Easy Mindful Art Activity: Tracing Shapes Watercolour Painting

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A Simple Guide to Creating a Mindful Abstract Watercolour Painting for Beginners

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Mindful art refers to the practice of creating art while focusing on the present moment.

Art has been used for centuries as a means of cultivating mindfulness and achieving inner peace.

Today, we’ll create an abstract watercolour painting that is easy for beginners. This mindful art activity is simple, inexpensive, and you’ll love the result.

I’ll guide you through the simple steps to complete your mindful watercolour painting. And, I’ve also created a video where you can watch me create my painting before you give it a try.

The best part is that no artistic skills are required! This simple yet stunning DIY watercolour painting is perfect for beginners or anyone who thinks they’re not creative.

Incorporating Mindfulness Into Your Art

Mindfulness is about being present and fully engaged in the moment. It involves paying attention to your thoughts, feelings, and surroundings, without judging or reacting to them.

How do you make your art activity mindful?

Before you begin, take a few deep breaths to center yourself and bring your attention to the present moment. Throughout the activity, stay mindful by doing the following:

Stay present in the moment.
Pay attention to the colours, textures, and movements of the paint.
Release the need for perfection and embrace mistakes.
Gently bring your wandering mind back into focus on the blending of colours, the flow of water, and the sensory experience of it all.
Pay attention to your breathing.
Experiment and express your feelings and thoughts through your artistic choices.
Take moments to pause and reflect, noticing how you feel both physically and emotionally.

Benefits of Mindful Art Activities

Mindful art activities focus on the process of creating, not the final product. This allows a safe space to express yourself without the need for artistic experience or skill.

Additionally, mindful art stimulates the right hemisphere of the brain, which is generally linked to creativity, intuition, and holistic thinking.

Engaging in mindful art can have calming effects on the mind and body. For example:

Bringing your mind into the “here and now” can reduce stress and anxiety.
Exploring your creativity without judgment and letting go of self-criticism can promote relaxation.

There are many other benefits, however, to keep this short and get to the mindful art activity, I’ll save those for another article. Let’s get started on our DIY watercolour painting for a little mindfulness-based stress reduction.

Art Supplies You’ll Need to Create Your Mindful Watercolour Painting

You can find all the items you will need for this creative project at a discount store. However, higher-quality materials will help yield better results. But don’t feel pressured to spend extra money unless you plan on selling your masterpieces.

Here are the items you will need:

Tape
Water
Watercolour paints
Watercolour paper
1 or 2 paint brushes
Fine point marker
Hard surface to work on

Tape

The tape will be used to adhere your watercolour paper to your working surface. Any type of tape will do, though I recommend sticking with masking tape or painter’s tape. I used blue painter’s tape because I had some available.

Water

You’ll want to have at least two containers of water to work with. One is to keep clear so you can add clean water to your paper as needed and the other is to rinse your brush between colours.

Paints

Any type of watercolour paint will do for this art activity, either tubes (liquid paints) or watercolour pans (block paints). I used liquid watercolour tube paints by Winston & Newton.

Paper

You’ll want to use watercolour paper. Regular paper is too thin and will tear. Other types of paper may not properly absorb the paint. You can find watercolour paper at your local dollar store, but I recommend seeking out better paper. This is the one item worth investing more in as the paper quality can vastly impact the experience and result. I used Strathmore 400 Series watercolour paper.

Brushes

Any type of watercolour brush found in your local dollar store will do for this art activity. If you plan on making painting a new hobby, I’d recommend investing in higher-quality brushes that will yield better results, last longer, and come in an array of shapes and sizes. I used Princeton watercolour paintbrushes for this painting. I also frequently use paint brushes by Winston & Newton and Arteza.

You should use at least two brushes; one for the paint and one for the clean water.

Marker

The marker will be used for tracing shapes in your painting. For best results, I suggest using a waterproof black marker with a fine point. I initially used a Sharpie, which worked well, but I switched to a Sakura Pigma pen I found on Amazon because it had better ink flow.

Working Surface

You’ll want a clean, hard surface to tape your watercolour paper down. If you use a portable surface, such as an artboard or a thick piece of cardboard, you can pick it up to move the paint around and create some interesting designs.

Steps to Engaging in Mindful Art

There is no right or wrong way to do this. Follow my guidance, but ultimately, do what feels good for you. Try not to think ahead about what your painting is going to look like – be present in what you’re doing in each moment. That’s the essence of mindfulness.

Gather the materials listed above. You’ll want to have everything ready before you begin.
Tape your watercolour paper to your working surface.
Use a clean brush to ‘paint’ water all over your paper. This gets the paper ready to absorb the paint and sets us up to paint wet-on-wet. This will allow the colours to blend nicely.
Add water to each of the paint colours and mix well.
Add paint to the paper. Watch the paint spread across the page. Add more colours as desired until the paper is covered. We’re not trying to create a recognizable image; we’re just doing what feels natural.
Add more water to the paints and/or the paper as needed. If you can, pick the painting up to move the paint around. It’s okay if pools of water form.
Once the paper is covered, let it dry for a couple of hours.
When completely dry, use your black marker to trace the shapes. You can be as detailed as you want. Go slow and allow yourself to enter a meditative state. Remember the tips listed above on how to incorporate mindfulness.
Remove the tape and enjoy your watercolour painting!

Conclusion

Mindful artistic expression is a powerful and proven way to relax, express yourself, and improve your overall well-being. Mindful art activities can take on many other forms besides painting, such as sculpting, drawing, or art journaling, to name a few.

If you want to use art to heal on a deeper level, a trained art therapist can help you express thoughts and feelings and interpret their meaning. Remember, mindfulness is a cognitive skill that can be improved through regular practice. So keep creating art! It’s good for your mental health.

Watch the video!

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