Elegance

Elegance of Sychronicities
We just added a link to our blogroll ("ScrawlEncompassing" to your right) for Jane Dickinson, CZT. As I was doing that, Maria, who was sitting across from me on our porch, said, "You have to look at this!"

It was (cue soundtrack from Twilight Zone) the same image I was viewing at that moment! We were appreciating how, with just some shading where the lines were close together, Jane had created an image that looked like someone poking their fingers into it from the other side.

Jane had created this for Laura Harms' 15 Minutes of Fame challenge. Which brings us to another "elegance," the . . .

Elegance of Limits
Jane writes about her Zentangle creation above,

For weeks and weeks I have enjoyed the energy and eye candy over at Laura Harms’s blog I am the Diva. She is issuing a weekly challenge that has struck a very creative chord in many Zentangle® enthusiasts. The weekly slide shows Laura assembles are such a treat to sit back and absorb; so much fun to see the variety submitted on the same subject.

So here is it, Challenge #17 and I have decided to join. I chose this round in part because the requirement is to spend only 15 minutes drawing a Zentangle.

I chose a single pattern for simplicity and time. My first version of Knightsbridge was simple enough to allow me to fill in all the squares in the allotted time. In this, my second attempt, I wanted to use the lines to further suggest shape and also allow myself time to shade. Once I had the lines drawn I realized I would *never* have enough time to color in all those little polygons! So out came the pencil for shading and I called it finished.

Given the limit of time, Jane created something that might not have otherwise have taken form. We think that is part of Zentangle's (and life's) magic . . . the elegance and inspiration of limits of tile area, of a Zentangle string, and of time.


Elegance of Synchronicity P.S.
We just received this email:

Two years ago I met a lovely artsy crafty lady. Her energy and enthusiasm learning new things started me on my own path. We shared ideas and encouraged each other while spending hours in our local park enjoying the outside and each other as our dogs played.

A year ago our paths diverged and, although there were the occasional phone calls and email in the beginning it soon tapered off. It had been over six months since we last communicated. When I discovered Zentangle, I thought of her and how much she would enjoy it and planned to contact her soon.  Before that, I wrote to you thanking you and you kindly posted my email on your site newsletter.  And, because this is not a coincidental universe (!) my friend saw the email and knew right away that it was me!  She called immediately; shared the news that she had found Zentangle at the same time I did!  We chatted for nearly an hour!  We will meet again in two weeks at the local stamping shop that hosts a Zentangle group!

Thanks again for reuniting me with a long lost friend!

Click image for larger view.