Using Your Hands
Your own hands can be a lovely place for starting a Visual Journal page. Your hands allow you to feel and sense the world around you. With your hands you connect and to communicate through text, a letter, a handshake or a hug. Consider all your hands do; how they serve; what they create; and who they touch.
I often enjoy creating in my visual journal for the sheer tactile joy – smearing pastels, pouring paint, tearing paper, crinkling foil. Many times I have rubbed the palm of my hand in craft paint and stamped it onto my page.
My friend, Shannon, has often shared with me her journal pages in which she begins by tracing her hands. In her sketch books the shapes of her hands have been morphed into a place for exploring positive and negative shape, for flowing text around the perimeter, and as a base for radiating patterns. She has shown me that the possibilities are endless.
Inspired by her techniques, I created the above image using pen to first write out my thoughts for the day. Then tracing my hand in sharpie marker. Next adding inspirational text to the palms and fingertips with permanent pen. The final layer was water color paint for an extra pop of flow and color.
This week, I encourage you to try using your hands as part of an expressive art experience. As always your comments are welcome below. Let us know what you did and how it felt.
Best wishes on your creative journey!
Love & Blessings,
Rev. Jen
If you enjoy keeping a Visual Journal, please consider joining our free FB group dedicated to Visual Journals. https://www.facebook.com/groups/VisualJournalCommunity/
For those of you who live in the Kansas City, MO area, I would also like to invite you to join me for our weekly Visual Journal program held at Unity Village. For more details and a map to our meeting room visit our events page.
“Being able to smear the paint and express myself while I squished and oozed my fingers in the mess of my past life was wonderful. Unbelievably comforting & healing.” -Joanne P.
