Today we are going to look at ‘mark making’ – It is slightly similar to doodling but you are using additional tools, lids, bottle tops or any other recycled or natural materials. It is a good idea to experiment with some of your tools to see what kind of marks you can get. There’s a special kind of freedom in intuitive mark making, you don’t have the pressure of making “art.” It is creative play and expression.
Check out my journal above to see how I create in my journal.
What You can Try
We are not thinking about drawing something specific, but we are going to make marks. Choose a tool: a lid, a stick dipped in ink, a brush, a crayon, a piece of string – whatever you have and start to make marks on the paper. Try other things like using your non-dominant hand or put on music and respond to it with marks on the surface.
These marks don’t need to “be” anything. They can be scribbles, slashes, scratches, dots, or loops. Fill a page - or several.
Intuitive mark making is like your voice before you have the words. It side steps the need to be perfect and you just have fun. You learn to value the moment and express what you have no words for. You can do it anytime and with any supply.
Once you have a moment you can add to your marks, color them in, cut them up and use in collage, or build a library of patterns and textures that you can return to.
Takeaway Nuggets:
Intuitive marks are expressions of energy, not outcome.
The body often knows what the mind hasn’t said yet, let it speak.
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Check out some of the free and paid resources below to enhance your creative journey
Check out Filling the Creative Well which helps you establish your creative practice. In the course Filling the Creative Well, your journal is also a place to answer questions, encourage and motivate you, some days you need a reminder and so filling it with encouraging words so that you can come back to it, especially in those days where you are in a valley is really important.
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Posts
I love this idea, especially the suggestions of using your non-dominant hand or making marks in response to music. I'm often struggling to find new ways to be creative, so I really like the idea of creating through energy without overthinking or worrying about the outcome. Thank you for the tips!
ReplyDeleteAmanda, you blow my mind! Your work is so beautiful. Sometimes it looks like what a brain cell would see, looking out. I also love your use of colors. My reaction to the mark making is nonverbal, so I don't know how to speak it. Thank you for being the creational genius you are!
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