In the beginning there were only a few tangles. It had to start somewhere, after all. But just a few tangles were all that was needed. Rick and Maria decided that tangles would have names from the start. They would need an identity, and they had to be simple enough that you could create them in a few basic steps without the need for rulers, compasses or anything extra.
They made sure that each student would be encouraged to reproduce a tangle in their own way, rather than trying to copy it exactly as they did. They accomplished this by leaving room for each artist’s interpretation of a tangle to be exactly what it was meant to be and by not showing a finished tile before starting. As time passed, they shared their enthusiasm for each new tangle as it was discovered and deconstructed. Each one with a name and a personality.
In 2009, Maria created a large piece of artwork titled 102 Tangles. At the time it represented all the tangles that had been discovered and deconstructed by Zentangle HQ. It was so enchanting that they released it as a print in 2010 so that others could be inspired by all it shared.
The 102 Tangles was more important than we initially realized. Not only was it a grand example of all the existing tangles, but it also showed how those tangles connected to each other. There were simple tangles, iconic tangles and whisperings of grid and organic tangles all all created before the infrastructure of Zentomology even existed.
Fifteen-plus years have come and gone since this piece of art first came to be, and so much has changed and blossomed in the world of tangles. It is true that our tangles have evolved, and we too, as Zentangle practitioners have evolved. Yet we have discovered that the sophisticated tangles of today all carry the history of those 102 tangles within them. Today, we celebrate the importance of each stroke, after all, they have led us to where we are now.
We hope you had some fun trying to find all the names to the tangles in the 102 Tangles print. Please see the answer key below to learn the names of all 102 tangles included in the 2009 print, still available here.
Key: 102 Tangles
Did anyone attempt to find them all?
Nanette on
Los amo!!!!!!
María Isabel Padilla on
Los amo!!!!!!
María Isabel Padilla on
This poster was my introduction to Zentangle, so it’s special to me. In the summer of 2024, with help from fellow tangler Linda Genaw, we identified as many tangles as we could. I’m happy to say, we got almost all of them right! I created 35 videos on my Not Perfect Zen channel to show all of the patterns. It was an awesome project to complete.
Barbara Langston on
YES! It was quite the challenge for this rather newbie tangler, however with the help of the Zenthology (I’ve about worn out my book now), I did eventually get all of them except for #101 and #102. I thought 102 was maybe “braze” with a dot enhancer. #101 was the mysterious one that I could not figure out, yet it is such a simple pattern!
I thought #62 and #90 (paradox) was a duplicate, but I see now that Rick’s version is different.
I had to do some deep-dive digging on some of the oldies, like Kathy’s dilemma, tagh, chillon and evoke, but I did eventually find samples of them online and could identify them in the 102 tangles!
Kathy Kult, CZT40 on
(I hope this is allowed)
To: Holly L Bullock
Your reference to “stacks” has been wonderfully noted! Hope your healing goes well. Hang in there!
Beth Lovelle on
Robbin K on
gracias …. lo necesito
Adriana Araujo on
gracias …. lo necesito
Adriana Araujo on
How fun this was! I too am going to order the print from ZTHQ! And with the list of tangles, it will help me identify tangles that I am unsure of — I’m still a newbie! Thanks, ZTHQ
LaquetaS on
Holly L Bullock on
Sarah on
Beth Lovelle on
Chrissie Frampton on
Mary Ellen Ziegler on
Think it will be easier if I order the the print … Then I can color code and number the tangles as I find them. Might be useful as tangle inspiration in my art space 🤔 Thanks!
Ann Baum, CZT36 on
Hylla Fischer on
I could only find 55.l I too would love a print of the tangles to use in the future.
Deb Fowler on
ArjadLH , Elefantangle on
Mary Bartrop on