In my opinion, line drawing is the most relaxing of all “art as therapies.” By therapy, I’m referencing relaxation and peaceful environment. Your idea of therapy is your idea. Explore those definitions.

The concept of line drawing is simple. Have you ever doodled on the back of an envelop while on hold or while talking on the phone? This is line drawing.

The materials are simple. A blank canvas, whether paper (with structure) or anything that will take ink and, like we called them back in the day, magic markers or Sharpies in various writing widths, from very fine to fat. I like using black markers. The starkness of black on white is pleasurable to me. There are other colors as well. Sometimes I’ll throw in a splash of red for interest.

Lines:
___________ thin to fat and fatter, straight, zigzag, squiggly. Circles with the same concept in mind, thin to fat, big to small and everything in between. Take a look at your “Wingding” fonts for ideas.

The fun is in the doing, the drawing and connecting. Start with small renditions of your lines. Don’t try to rush it by thinking you need to fill big spaces all at once. The magic of line drawing is total nothingness. Forget time. Focus on the line you’re pulling, or the circle you’re drawing. And never fret about whether the circle or line is straight. Better that they aren’t.

When you’ve completed the piece, look for symbolism, hidden meaning or images of people or structures that you had no idea you were drawing.

If you don’t find anything, it was not meant to be. What you’ve completed is your peacefulness on the page and what can be more beautiful than that?

 This is Shoes, Circles and Tumbling Boxes

 This is not a post about berries. It is, however, about train of thought, how one thing leads to another, especially when you're in a creative mood.

The other night, I was putting finishing touches on a mixed media piece titled Carnival and suddenly, I thought of blueberry muffins. When I got to a place where I could reasonably take a break from Carnival, down came the cookbooks. This time I wanted to make something without so much butter and sugar, just something I could snack on, or maybe have in the morning with coffee.

​Time was running out, I needed to get back to Carnival, so instead of muffins, I made muffin bread. No need to grease and flour all the muffin tins (didn’t have any muffin papers), so I greased and floured a bread pan. This is the result. It's easy to slice and stays well in the fridge uncovered. I thought I would have to toast it, but no, just slice a hunk off and enjoy with coffee or tea. Of course you could toast if that's your preference.

Here’s the recipe. It’s a one bowl thing. I left out the sugar because the blueberries seemed sweet enough. I used oil instead of butter, and egg whites instead of whole eggs (those pesky yolks and their cholesterol!).
​I like King Arthur flour. This time I used King Arthur white wheat, but I suppose any flour will do.

Prepare pan. 350 oven
​Ingredients: 1 ½ cups of flour, 2 t baking powder, ¼ t salt, 1/3 c oil, 2 egg whites or one whole egg, flavoring, pint of berries.
Wash and dry berries. Sprinkle a little flour, about a teaspoon or so, on the berries and toss for even coverage.
Put dry ingredients in bowl, stir.
Put oil in a measuring cup; add two egg whites and enough water to make one cup, stir to break up egg whites
Add liquid to flour mixture
Stir, just enough, it’s not a cake, you want it kind of bumpy. If it's too wet add a little more flour; if it's too dry add a little water.
Add teaspoon or so of flavoring (vanilla, lemon)
Fold in blueberries. I’ve made it with strawberries and will try raspberries
Scrape batter into a prepared bread pan (you could make muffins if you want)
Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or so
Cool in pan about 5 minutes
Scrape sides of pan and turn onto plate

Now, back to Carnival. This is acrylic paint on canvas, magic marker (sharpies in different size nibs); and sequins. The yellow fading into the darker colors made me think of a carnival or circus tent.

This is art as therapy. Try your hand. There are no mistakes or rules, only paint, a surface, your hands and heart. The first one will probably feel a little tentative, but then watch how you feel the next time you try.
Here’s to happiness!

#ArtAsTherapy