Expandism

Art as a mental exercise

Expandism is an art trend in which art is approached as a mental exercise. In Expandism, a free-form work of art is constructed little by little through details, it gradually expands and becomes complete.

Conventional art-making starts from the idea, from sketching and working with form, mass and large surfaces. In the beginning one gropes, but the work will gradually progress and became more precise, until at the end, attention is given to the most important details.

Expandism rejects this sequence and approaches art making from the opposite direction. The focus is on details and the aim is a careful concentration on those details, which will transform the making of art into a meditative and relaxing mental exercise.

As one works the number of details grows and the artist begins to draw attention to the whole. Shape, form, composition and possible ideas are revealed little by little towards the end of the process. But this does not always happen, nor is the "quality" of the outcome always directly related to a successful meditation. In Expandism the primary goal is a rewarding creative moment and the good feeling that follows. The work of art is just a side-product of this process.

Expandism is a mental exercise, focusing on details, working with concentration, seeking for unhurried moments in the middle of everyday life, pursuing flow-experience, meditating, contemplating, making a creative journey, revealing the art work, searching for hidden form and adventure where the end result is not known in advance.

Meditative drawing

1. Ensure peace and quiet for the drawing session
Switch off the mobile phone, forget the clock, miss deadlines, put aside your busy life, all your sorrows, joys and concerns. The sketch moment can only happen in the here and now, if you allow it.

2. Settle down to work
Forget other people, do not talk. Sit as comfortably as you can. Breathe in calmly. View and explore your drawing tools. Select a pen or an other drawing medium that pleases you most.

3. Draw a square or a rectangle and inside it random patterns meditating at a leisurely pace
Start from any spot of the area and proceed slowly. Feel the silence of the paper, touch it tenderly and wisely with the point of the pen, all your attention focused on the pen marks. Make each line individual, unique. Leave some white space between the traces. Do not try to fix anything, there are no errors. Just keep on meditating without rushing, even if something unexpected happens. Find something new, come up with new ideas, make the process more difficult, work slowly, focus, there is no hurry. When space runs out, you're finished.

4. Revert back to your everyday life
Observe what you have done, think about what you have experienced, what you felt and make it conscious. There are no correct solutions, style points are not given. The end result is not important, the meditation moment is what matters.

5. Take the experience with you
You can have a small meditative drawing session on the bus, at home or at work. This method will help you to break away from the hectic pace of your life, when ever you need a quiet little moment of your own.



Meditative drawing is a suitable exercise for visual arts education and is applied easily to different mediums and techniques.

© Pekka Hannula (20.08.2010)