Maria writes...
My lifelong love of letters began around the age of five or six. I absolutely knew I was to become a commercial artist... I even had a green velveteen beret I would wear to prove it. I began selling my art soon after (albeit very reasonably!), and the rest is history!
Before Zentangle appeared and changed my life, I was a professional calligrapher. I spent my days studying graceful forms, flowing lines, and the rich history of hand-lettering. Little did I know all of that would lay the foundation for what would become the Zentangle Method.
Letters were instrumental in the origin and creation of the Zentangle Method. It was a large "illuminated letter" that I was decorating when Rick and I discovered the Zentangle Method. I was carefully adding small patterns around a large gilded letter and entered a state of deep focus. Rick observed this experience and recognized similarities to mediation. And perhaps it was no accident that it happened this way. Rick brought his knowledge of meditation and essence of mission, and I brought my life's work as a lettering artist. Monk and Scribe: the perfect storm for what this story required.
Letters and lettering show up in every corner of the Zentangle world. When we (try to) describe the Zentangle Method, we say that if you can write your name, you can create Zentangle art. The elemental strokes are depicted as "iCSO" (dot, line, curve, S-shape, and orb), and, over the years, these letters have inspired some of our favorite tangles and projects, each one a love letter memorializing that day in my studio.
From the very beginning, there was intentionality in how we shaped the Zentangle Method. We wanted it to be as accessible as possible, so we did as much as we could without relying on written language. Our step-outs, for example, are not numbered. Instead, we use arrows to guide a tangler from one step to the next. It was a small but deliberate choice. And because of our forethought, the Zentangle Method can be taught without verbal instruction. You can simply watch our hands move across our surface, one stroke at a time, and follow along. The video instructions we included in our first kit had no spoken words.
Perhaps it was this accessibility that allowed the Zentangle Method to travel so far, so fast… spreading across the world with very little advertising. Whether that was the reason or simply a beautiful coincidence, I can't say for certain. What I do know is this: tangling has become its own language. Not one written in words or spoken in any single tongue, but one drawn stroke by stroke, understood by anyone who picks up a pen and begins. No translation required.
That, to me, is the quiet miracle of it all. Art has always had the power to reach across borders, cultures, and languages, and the Zentangle Method, in its simplicity and intention, does exactly that. Wherever our tangling takes us in the world, we are never strangers. We already speak the same language.
The Scribe and The Monk … sounds like a the title of a beautifully illustrated book. Maria and Rick’s story of how their art and life style merged into The Zentangle Method would make an inspiring book. Their secret ingredient is a sense of humor … the puns, playfulness and obvious love that is present all the Zentangle content. I am so grateful to have stumbled across Zentangle, it has changed my life for the better.
Ann Baum, CZT36 on
LLS on
The most amazing aspect of trying to put into words or language what the Zentangle®️ method is tends to be this… no letters joined together or thoughts written to explain can actually explain what it means to follow the method and have a Zentangle practice! It is both universal and very private at the same time. It is such a privilege to have experienced it and to continue to have it enhance my life daily. Thank you is not enough but will have to do. Katrina
Katrina Thiebaut on
Miriam on
Anna Wieseman on
Dear Maria, I was one of those kids that just could not draw. Once while in college I received my first “D” ever. It was on a lab assignment. I was to draw and label all the parts of a grasshopper’s head. I spent hours and ended up with a trash can filled with perfectly labeled but poorly drawn examples. When I questioned the professor about my grade (I was an “A” student). She accused me of spending 5 minutes out in the hall drawing it right before class!
Since that time I’ve taken drawing classes and bought many drawing books I used to practice with, but I never improved. Thank you and Rick so much for creating Zentangle. I wish I could thank the wonderful CZT that showed up to a class of only 2 and totally changed my life! I don’t know her name, but I’ve been drawing ever since and wish so much I could tell her how much she meant to me. Breaking it down to just ‘icos’’ with No Mistakes was the ticket. Being able to draw amazing patterns, then adding dimension thru shading was and is still so thrilling. I loved your Kitchen Table videos and being introduced to different art supplies through the Project Packs. Thank you both, along with all the whole Zentangle team, so so much. Best Regards, Bonnie
p.s. It is Wonderful to watch you draw again❣️
Bonnie Ralli on
Ho poh yen on
Ho poh yen on
Maria, what a beautiful post. I love the Zentangle method and it has changed my life in so many ways for the better. I’m so grateful to you for sharing your talents. I hope you know that you and Rick have changed so many lives for the better, I too have so much gratitude for learning this method.
Rebecca Reschke on
Sandy Kelley-Jones CZT on
Tami Holby on
I saw Zen Tangles on Facebook in the Reels and jumped in! I love how it keeps me from scrolling. I’ve taken art classes and love drawing, but if I don’t use it, I lose it and then I need to restart the learning process. Tangling has already straightened my lines and small circles…still working on the large circles. I just purchased an expandable circle tool that should be here soon, cause, why not get some assistance. I tangle consistently and I decided to venture back into my sketching. I purchased the This is not a sketchbook it’s an art class to further my drawing. I will continue to tangle though! I love that there are no mistakes that can’t be made into something beautiful. Although, I have removed a page if I totally messed it up…LOL!
Cathy Flynn on
I can’t express enough Gratitude for the Zentangle method and philosophy.
Another way to express ourselves, not with words, but strokes, turned in to focused patterns, and a release of so many emotions.
Linda R Elkin on
Heidi on
Dolores Redifer on
Dear Maria,
Your article landed perfectly. Honestly, spot on.
Yesterday I told someone exactly what you wrote: if you can write your name, you can zentangle. And reading your words today, seeing how you traced that whole journey back to the letters, back to the intention, back to the accessibility—it just confirmed everything.
You’ve captured exactly why Zentangle matters. That’s the language we speak. Thank you for writing this. Thank you for reminding me of why I fell in love with it in the first place.
Warm regards,
Hilde
Hilde van Ginhoven on
Dear Maria,
Your article landed perfectly. Honestly, spot on.
Yesterday I told someone exactly what you wrote: if you can write your name, you can zentangle. And reading your words today, seeing how you traced that whole journey back to the letters, back to the intention, back to the accessibility—it just confirmed everything.
You’ve captured exactly why Zentangle matters. That’s the language we speak. Thank you for writing this. Thank you for reminding me of why I fell in love with it in the first place.
Warm regards,
Hilde
Hilde van Ginhoven on
Thank you to Rick, Maria and your team for continuing to inspire us.
Lynda
Lynda Hicks on
Thank you, Maria and Rick. I am grateful each day to have discovered this way of creating. The eight steps, the accessibility to anyone who can use a pen and write their name, the beauty and flow of repetitive patterns invite art and connection into our lives.
Diane Harpster on