Take Away-an exercise in mindfulness

Non-dominant hand

As I first saw it

Taking lines away

This week, in our mindfulness art group, we explored drawing an object as it is, then drawing it again, taking something away. This prompt could as usual, be interpreted in whatever way we chose.

There were beautiful flowers on the table and I took a few to my seat. In the warm-up, we drew the object as we saw it, with non-dominant hand. After that came drawing it again and again, taking something away each time. What we took away was left up to us.

When asked to describe our experience, I realized that taking something away, even if it's a mark or color, not only can radically change the picture, but it can also change the way I feel. As I brought fatigue and sadness to class, (the reason to be discussed over drinks some time perhaps), doing this exercise tapped into a sense of loss. Each time I took something away was a very powerful experience. I was aware of feeling vulnerable already, and thought I was playing it safe by just changing line, layout or shape, etc. Interesting...

Taking away the stems, leaves

Changing view, background, layout