CZT Family Tree: Pilar Pulido, Sara Ponce Sánchez and Tomàs Padrós Cruz.

We always say that the Zentangle Method attracts really awesome people. We have had the pleasure of working with wonderful Certified Zentangle Teachers (CZT) all over the world and we are excited to share these wonderful people with the entire Zentangle Community. Through our series, CZT Family Tree, we will introduce individual CZTs.

Today, we are excited to introduce a teaching team from Spain, Pilar Pulido, Sara Ponce Sánchez and Tomàs Padrós Cruz.

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Pilar writes...

You might want to know how we got to work together, tanglers are always curious ...here is the story:

during the lock down, Sara Ponce and I were in the phone very often as we were part of the teachers who offered Instagram lives to spread the Zentangle Method in those uncertain days. We shared ideas, tricks, advice ... we dreamt a lot together. We even offer an Instagram live together in June 2020 realizing that we had a close vision about teaching and the way we used Zentangle. We realized as well that we both were "technical girls". We enjoyed so much preparing that class together, that we ended up making a challenge in October to share and draw InktoberTangles event with our followers with a template with a tangle by Tomàs as string (Lunar project with "Blind Membranart"). It was very welcomed and we were so excited that it was the spark we needed to create a group for online Zentangle classes. Then, "Oasis" was born in November 2020. At the same time, I was also in contact with Tomàs, he was curious about our group and asked for attending as a guest in that first class. Sara and I accepted (for sure!) and ... in the end he joined the team as a teacher. He very kindly gave to the group one of his unpublished tangle Oasis. We have created a lot of classes since November 2020 and learned a lot from each other. As a team we also organized 2 "Oasis Gourmet" events specially for the tanglers who are not able to attend weekly to our classes. But undoubtedly the most valuable thing we have promoted is the friendship that has emerged with and among the students of this group (we will be always grateful for their confidence) beyond the Zentangle ... because Zentangle is much more than Zentangle!

Name: Pilar Pulido, CZT 26 (right), Sara Ponce Sánchez, CZT 27 (middle) and Tomàs Padrós Cruz, CZT EU2 (left).

Hometown:

Pilar: Madrid, Spain
Tomàs: Barcelona, Spain
Sara: Andoain, Spain

Favorite tangle:

Pilar: Bales, and its ton of variations
Tomàs:I don't have a favourite tangle. But the patterns that appeal to me the most are those that have a consistent structure and suggest overlaps without the need for shading. My own tangle Wanderline, for example, has a clear structure, but does not suggest depth without shading. A tangle with a solid structure is one that shows a strong formal logic and is not the result of a successive addition of different and decorative elements. I call them tangles for addition. However, this does not mean that there cannot be some tangle for addition that I love. It's just a generic preference.

Sara: My favorite tangles are the simplest ones, de ones that we learn at the very beginning when we start practicing the Zentangle® Method. Among all of them, at this moment my favorite tangle is flux.

Favorite place to tangle:

Pilar: My kitchen or my desktop. I also love to tangle under a tree outside in a park or the countryside.
Tomàs: I have a studio with somewhat questionable lighting conditions. It's not ideal, but it's the most accessible site I have. I wish I had a private garden or sea view. I taught some Zentangle classes in the Gothic cloister of the Church of Santa Anna in Barcelona, with the sound of a fountain and birds. Really an ideal place.
Sara: my favorite place is in any of the seminars, meetings, and places that I have shared with other tanglers. At home, my favorite place is the desk in my studio.

How I use the Zentangle Method in my life:

Pilar: I use it to calm down from stress days and also just for fun. This method became my passion, I think many CZTs have this love at first sight in common. Apart from this, I also tangle to prepare classes, and although this is still tangling, I sometimes feel the pressure to create and it’s not the same.
Tomàs: I am a non-retired high school teacher. That leaves me little time for Zentangle. So, in my case, the Zentangle is a way to get out of the routine, relax, enjoy, feed my creativity and, above all, share it. When I teach Zentangle, the direct relationship with the students is very motivating. And the way each one interprets your proposal is always surprising and enriching. The community factor is one of the most attractive of Zentangle.
Sara: I enjoy having a zenmoment for me at the end of the day, when everybody is sleeping at home. It helps me to connect with myself and to recharge energy for the following day.

My favorite story or memory about teaching the Zentangle Method is:

Pilar: When I contacted Lynn Mead to ask her if she would like to collaborate with me to co-create a class and she accepted although we didn’t know each other. I will always be grateful to her.
Tomàs:The unexpected satisfaction of many students and myself and the warm and friendly atmosphere in any Zentangle meeting, and, above all, among the members of the Zentangle Oasis group that I share with Pilar Pulido and Sara Ponce.
Sara: there have been some special classes that I have created where there is a final surprise. I love seeing students faces realizing and being grateful to see what they have been able to create.

Through my experiences as a CZT, I have learned:

Pilar: that time for myself matters and I can help others with this method. And I’ve also improved my English level!

Tomàs:There is enormous potential in seemingly very small things and a lot of time wasted on over-the-top ambitions. Know your limits and you will get 200%.
Sara: it is the responsibility of the teacher to make the process easy for the student. (It is easy to make things difficult, but it is difficult to make things easy). In every class I teach my attention is in the students and I try to make the process easy for them. Some of the Zentangle Inspired Art Clases I teach might seem difficult (if you just see the tile) but the teaching process follows the Zentangle® Method and every step is well thought so that the students can do it easily. And this applies to teaching Zentangle® but to may other live areas, it is important to make things easy for us and for others.

If I’m not tangling, you will find me…:

Pilar: Sharing beer with “tapas” with good friends or family.
Tomàs: If they are not getting involved, you can find them... correcting, preparing classes, reading, listening to music or accompanying people at risk of social exclusion or totally marginalized in collaboration with a parish of Santa Anna in Barcelona. I would like to implement the Zentangle in this context, but I still must think about how to manage the material and the coordination with the parish. Thank God the wonderful gothic cloister would be available for me.
Sara: enjoying time with my kids or learning how to help one of my sons to improve his communication skills.

Mosaic Name :

Pilar: @zentrarte
Tomàs: @tomaspadros
Sara: @manosaltangle

Website/Blog:

Pilar: zentrarte.es
Sara: manosaltangle.com