I’ve been working a lot over the past year on expressing myself creatively – it’s a huge part behind my reasons for starting this blog. There are a multitude of different methods you can use to express yourself, from doodling, painting, writing, and photography.

I’d always been reluctant to engage with drawing or painting, as I don’t consider myself particularly talented in this area – I think I’m much better with words and photography. In recent months, however, I’ve developed a love for intuitive creation to soothe myself.

---

For the longest time, I thought you needed to have innate talent, that you had to be good at your hobbies to enjoy them. But I’ve recently found that it’s simply not true. Enjoying the process itself is far more important and useful.

I’ve spent a lot of time exploring galleries over the past few months, and have found a new perspective on engaging with art. Where I previously only considered those engaging with realism to be talented, I’ve recently taken to enjoying more abstract pieces of art, especially ones where you can feel the emotions and energies of the artist radiate from the canvas (or other base material).

One of my favourite exhibitions, Kaleidoscopic Realms, was temporarily held in Nottingham Castle. Unfortunately, it’s now closed, but you can see some examples of the art on display here.

You don’t actually need to have a desired outcome to find the benefits in painting – I find not having a specific theme in mind much more freeing sometimes than trying to paint something specific.

With this post, I’d like to invite you to explore some of the benefits of painting intuitively and guide you into engaging with some points to get started.

---

The Therapeutic Benefits of Painting Intuitively

1. It Improves Mindfulness
   Allowing you to focus on the present – engaging with your canvas or paper – creating art is inextricably linked to the foundations and fundamentals of mindfulness. It allows you to distract yourself and focus on the now. (Source: https://scholar.utc.edu/honors-theses/106/)
2. It Encourages Self-Expression
   Focusing less on creating a defined subject can help unlock different things about yourself. When you’re finished, think about the colours you have chosen and what they may mean. Think about the forms you have chosen and what they may represent.
3. It Promotes Creativity and Flow
   When you paint without a set destination in mind, you open yourself up to new possibilities. You’re not trying to achieve anything in particular, and are simply trying to create uninhibited.
4. It Allows Vulnerability
   It can be nerve-wracking to do something we don’t necessarily feel we are good at, but sometimes this vulnerability can be good for us. Without trying to force what we’re representing, we can move away from trying to make our art look like something else, and instead engage with how it makes us feel.

---

How I Intuitively Paint

Rather paradoxically, it can feel relatively unintuitive to paint intuitively, as we’re often accustomed to trying to represent something that tangibly exists already onto our page. Here, I’ve got some basic tips to get you started.

1. Choose a base
   I usually work with a small canvas board or canvas sheet. I don’t buy the most expensive papers and canvases I can find, but ones that work within my budget.
2. Choose your materials
   When I’m engaging with intuitive art, I’ll pull out all of my materials and select whatever I feel most drawn to. Again, they don’t need to be fine quality materials – just whatever you feel most at home with.
3. Choose your tools
   I love the tactile sensations of fingerpainting, and often just use my hands to paint intuitively. There’s actually some evidence to suggest that using your hands in this way can improve attention and mindfulness. Sometimes I’ll use brushes, sponges, and other tools. Make sure anything you might want to use is to hand, but feel free to go off script.
4. Select colours you feel drawn to
   You can think about the symbolism of these colours later – it might reveal something about you and how you’re feeling. But try not to pay too much attention to it during the process.
5. Embrace the freedom of the blank page
   Just start creating! Blob colours on the page, draw abstract shapes with the paint – just do whatever feels right. Trust the process!

I sometimes post by intuitive painting over on TikTok – I’d love for you to join me there.

I also find it helpful to have music playing while I paint – I’m a huge fan of surreal instrumentals, and particularly love this playlist at the moment:

Sometimes I find myself painting visualisations of the music, but I also feel that the selection of songs here add a soothing element to the entire process.

If you’d like to join a community that’s centred on creative connections, why not join me over on Facebook?

If you’ve found this guide helpful, you can support my guidance work and creative projects on Ko-Fi by buying products, guides, prints, or by making a small donation.

How do you engage with art for mindfulness? I’d love for you to join me over on TikTok with your creations ❤