Zentangle Untangled (2 page)

Beginning Zentangle is as easy as finding a pen and a surface. We’ll look at specific materials in a moment, but for now just know that if you have a pen on hand and the surface stays still long enough, it can be tangled on. Imagine the possibilities of that!

Can you draw a circle? It need not be a perfect one. Can you draw a straight line —well, straight-ish? Great—you’re halfway there already. Bet you didn’t think it was that easy!

Created in 2005, the Zentangle® concept was born when calligrapher Maria Thomas described to her partner the sense of focus, well-being and relaxation she felt while creating background patterns on a manuscript. A former Buddhist monk, her partner, Rick Roberts, recognized this state as one of meditation. Together they worked toward creating a system that would teach and encourage others to experience the same sensations.

In the years since, the Zentangle concept has developed a worldwide following, with Certified Zentangle® Teachers in more than a dozen countries and active communities online.

• There are 110 “official” Zentangle® patterns.
  
• There are more than three hundred Certified Zentangle® Teachers in locations across the globe, including North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
  
• Zentangle is being used with people from age 5 to 105.
  
• Zentangle has been used successfully in schools, hospitals, assisted-living facilities, mental health facilities and more.
  

Zentangle materials really are the finest materials available. Although there is flexibility in all things Zentangle-related (there are definitely no limits or rules!), the materials you use often reflect the value you put into what you are creating. It is nice to use lovely art materials, right?

Traditional Zentangle tiles are made from Fabriano Tiepolo printmaking paper. It is a 100 percent cotton, mold-made paper that is then cut to Zentangle tile size using a handmade die. In 2011, the black Zentangle tile was introduced, which is an Arches Cover paper, also made from 100 percent cotton.

To partner these papers, Zentangle formed a relationship with Sakura, the Japanese pen maker. Until I discovered Zentangle, I had never used the Pigma Micron pens—now I use almost nothing else! They work with the Tiepolo paper so beautifully, causing no bleed and drying to a fade-proof and waterproof finish. And their gel pens are fantastic on the black tiles, as you will see in the images throughout this book.

The original Zentangle® kit (pictured) is made from handmade Nepalese paper, in line with the founders’ beliefs supporting sustainable, ecologically sound production of art materials. Your Zentangle® kit is much like carrying around your favorite book—over time it may become a little worn with love. This is part of the charm!

It’s not about the patterns.

In fact, the patterns do not “belong” to anyone; many have origins in history and the natural world. Many have been derived from things that have been seen. No one really owns the patterns­—or tangles, as we call them. They are not what makes Zentangle unique.

The secret of what makes Zentangle unique is the teaching method. It’s about the why of what we do and the how, as opposed to the what. It’s the knowledge that Rick and Maria, as well as the CZTs, possess that you cannot get anywhere else­—not in this book or any other. You get the foundation of Zentangle® by learning from a CZT because we are able to talk in a language and in terms that have been developed to create something different. We explain how to draw the basic shapes, but we also talk about the materials, how to maximize them and where the beauty of Zentangle comes from. It’s something we learn because it has infiltrated our hearts. And, when we share that knowledge with you, it gets into your heart, too.

And THAT is where the beauty of Zentangle lies—within YOU.

Well, when you start learning the whys and hows of Zentangle, you begin to discover what is inside. You become connected to it. Being connected brings an inner peace, and you begin to relax. This is the Zen that Rick first recognized in Maria.

You become engrossed in what you’re doing. You shut out the noise and the busyness around you. You focus completely on the tile you’re working on, on the shape of the pen strokes. You think about the way you hold the pen. You think about the texture of the paper. In its beauty, you find your own, and you begin to allow your body to relax and focus on what you have at hand.

Many people use Zentangle to help them relax before sleep or to settle classrooms full of children after lunch. Many (including myself) use it to relieve anxiety during difficult times.

But the one thing that threads us all together, the thing that Zentangle brings to us all, is beauty.