Hi and welcome back to the Chrissie Murphy Designs Blog. On Instragram recently, I had a conversation about Mac and Cheese Tangles. I’m going to dive into it further in this post. So stick around…
Now before we go any further – I have a disclaimer I’d like to share. I have recently signed up to be an Affiliate for Amazon Australia. It means that I get a small percentage from the sale of anything you may purchase through links I use in my blog. Just want you to know before we get into today’s post.
The Expressive Bits
What are Mac and Cheese Tangles?
Well, Lee Burke CZT introduced me to the concept. Mac and Cheese Tangles, are the tangles you always use and always put together in a tile. To you, they go together like Mac and cheese.
They are your defaults, you keep going back to them. They’re a stable that continue to work for you time and time again. You can rely on them wholeheartedly to express what you need and perform how you require.
What are my Mac and Cheese Tangles and why?
Ok, I’ve worked out I have 4 and here they are;
- Mooka 3D by Eni Oken
- Flux by Zentangle
- Tipple by Zentangle
- Variations of Archer by Christianne Gerstner
I reach for these four tangles all the time! Why? Because I like the way they work together, they are truly Mac and Cheese tangles.
The tile in tonight’s post is one I’ve I recently finished called Freedom. I received the concept during worship at church one Sunday. It’s symbolic of the way freedom works in our lives…. Bonds and chains (the things that keep us tied and weighted down) need to be broken for freedom to reign.
When I started drawing it, my Mac and Cheese Tangles poured out.
What does it mean in terms of my artistic work as a whole?
These tangles happen over time. They find their way to you after finishing many tiles. You don’t even realise they’re attaching themselves to you until one day you wake up and notice you keep using the same tangles!
In terms of artistic work I think they represent maturity…. For me they do anyway. As you mature as an artist you begin to be able to do things without really thinking, art just pours out of you. I think this is an intentional thing though…. not by me, but by the Master Artist.
Even though we’ve matured, we must ensure we never stop growing. I think they are God’s gracious way of saying “ok, now you have time to try something else”.
You can depend on your Mac and Cheese Tangles to do their thing when you draw. Because of that, you’re left with a gift of time and space that can be filled with new techniques and exploration.
How can you take this idea and be more Expressive?
Have you been able to identify your Mac and Cheese Tangles? Lee Burke says hers is Huggins….
If you’re not sure, spend some time this week looking back on your tiles to see if you can identify yours. If you can, I believe you’ll notice a form of expression that has aligned itself with those tiles.
You will notice you conveyed more and expressed more clearly in them. I pray this encourages you to push in deeper with your tangling so intentional expression can pour out.
The Factual Bits
The materials used
- Strathmore Artist Tile 6in x 6in
- Derwent Inktense in blue
- Unipin Fineliner in Black
- Signo Uniball Gel Pen in white
- Prismacolor Premier Coloured Pencils in varying colours
- Grey Copic Markers in W4, W5 and W7
How big is the Freedom tile?
It is 6 inches x 6 inches square.
Want to be more Expressive?
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Until next time, listen to your heart and sharpen your coloured pencils. A masterpiece awaits!
Bless you my friend
Chrissie xx
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