I have created 52 cards to inspire your journey with creative meditations. The card deck Create to Flow has four different categories : Create to Flow, Questions for Reflection, Color Moods, Wisdom Quotes In this blog post I would like to describe one way to use it. After a short meditation I pull one card. Today I had the card titled Alone. I spent some time reading the text and looking at the colors for a short while. I don\t plan what to do, instead I pick the first color that comes to mind and start to paint with curiosity. I paint and try to let go of any thoughts of what I should do, or if it is good enough. After that I take out my red notebook and write down a short reflection. The text on the card alone comes from a friend in Singapore, Cecile Hofer. I was surprised of how much yellow I had in my painting, for me yellow stands for joy. mes in the mirror can lead to great insights. This is one way to use the cards as inspiration to your creative meditations. You can also use them in discussions with groups and to prompt inspiration for creative writing. If you would like your own card deck you can find them in the shop. Goo luck to open your box of possibilities! #creativity #creative_inspiration #flow #expressive_arts

We all have days when we are too wound up, and are having trouble winding down through meditation. Our minds turn like whirlwinds and everything is spinning. The solution to your problem just won't enter your mind, but it might find a way to your heart through your hand. Start with the most basic, a pen and a paper. Use whatever you have close by, be it a post-it or a page in your notebook. Draw a line and draw the next line parallel to the first. Make another line where the first one ended and just continue to build some kind of pattern. Just scribble, the best thing is if it's a pattern that you repeat, so your mind can go to work on your creative problem and leave space for the problem to be solved when you have calmed down. Don't be surprised if it happens before the pattern is completed. I am sure that you have done something like this before, maybe in your school notebooks or while having long phone conversations. The good news is that cultural health science has now proven that it will decrease our anxiety levels within 20-30 minutes. I hope you enjoyed this and I have big news coming up, the book Create to Flow and a card deck with 52 creative inspirations will be released shortly. It is a 3 month journey in creative self/discovery and naturally you will be notified as soon as it will be available. Creative Regards Ingela #draw_to_relax #doodle #creative_mindfulness #sketching

Why playing can give you the one million dollar idea Professor Matti Bergström has spent his life researching the brain. He is convinced that to be creative we need to protect our "childbrain". This is where the ideas and creativity are born and it is all from play and dreams. So when we say to ourselves or to our children: That is just play or you are just daydreaming we are taking away the importance of the key to creativity and ideas. It is where chaos and order meet that we can create life changing ideas. One way of playing is to put a few large slabs of color on one side of a paper and then fold it over and press over the paper to fold it up and discover a new pattern of color. It is just fun, and you can't really control the outcome. But, you can repeat it as many times as you want and once it has dried you can add another layer, and of course you do change the colors. If it has been a while since you have been drawing and painting, challenge your courage to make a few marks to play.  Using crayons can be a great start, a couple of weeks ago I did just that. Me and a childhood friend sat by the lake with a big piece of wallpaper. We started with watercolor crayons, ended up walking on it, putting it into the lake, adding more color, folding, pressing, adding more color and listening to a great play list. Time stood still and the sun was shining. It was creative wellness in color. In those moments you get your best new ideas, and so much energy. The photo below is from that day. One of the chapters in the upcoming book and card deck is all about this. It is titled courage to color. This is a very good idea, to keep creating just for fun! It will also lower your stress hormone in less than 30 min. I would love to hear from you about what you dared, and what happened when you dared to let go. Thank you for being part of the Zenart community, and the online courses are open for you to start when the time is right. All the best Ingela Johansson #innovation #Creativity #flow

Earlier this summer I had the question: Can you meditate in Prada? Of course you can meditate basically in anything or anywhere. I had a student in creative meditation that had been meditating in the hospital cafeteria during 20 minutes of her lunch break every day at work for 20 plus years. This was her moment to get balance and energy for work as an emergency nurse. She meditated in a place filled with people and sound. We can all find our own way to meditate if it with creativity or a guided video the important thing is getting started. The picture is of Pradas rainbow sweater, and of course it is not what you wear it is like with exercise more important to do it. However if you are anything like me it can be so easy to fill your life with other things, I can honestly now say that if I don't meditate for a couple of weeks I notice a big shift in how I think and how well I can create or produce great work. Just like with exercise meditation or mindfulness is about finding a habit and a style that suits you. For me it improved my wellbeing even if I did a short meditation in 5 min in the morning. For me one of the best advices I had to start meditating was to start with putting on one song and stay present in that song. To sit down and color, or do a Mandala is also an active form of meditation that reduces stress. Now I would love to hear from you on what you find is difficult with a habit of meditation so that I can support you. Thank you for being part of the Zenart community. All the best Ingela Johansson #Prada_mindfulness #Meditation #Creative_wellness

Very well wrote a wonderful article about different methods why art works for stress relief. https://www.verywell.com/art-activities-for-stress-relief-3144589 Studies have shown that art in general can minimize anxiety and depression. One reason drawing and coloring may be helpful for stress is that the act itself brings us to the present moment—it can be an exercise in mindfulness. How creative self care can reconnect you with your intuition is best experienced with trying. You don’t need any prior art training to try, you need any kind of simple colors and paper. As the article suggests if you feel like you don’t have a lot of time, try doodling. I have doodled or sketched for as long as I can remember. To me my sketchbooks are more private or as private as any diary. I suppose they are a visual diary or art journal. If you find it hard to get started I have a course in Zenart starting, it’s a course filled with simple exercises for you to get started to turn of your logical mind and let creativity flow. I also have a free Zenart coloring book for you if you would like to try the tip of coloring. 3 exercises to get started. #intuitiveart #creativeexercisesforstressrelief #Mindfulpainting #Zenart #artforstressrelief #mindfulart

Every piece does not become art, it’s really not the point but every piece has told me something about myself. I started training after the new year as so many of us, I hurt my foot while walking on ice and suddenly my training took another path. Meditation and painting. My clever friend that has been a meditation teacher for many years explained to me why it works so well. This is some of what she shared: “meditation has helped me not to feel fear and that is very important for art” Radhi Raja I have never quite understood the question about if you have to wait for inspiration as an artist. You can always work, but for art you need a calm sense of mind. Maybe that is inspiration. If art meditation feels like a step for you, start by trying coloring. It’s a great way to unwind, relax and enjoy color. You can download your free copy of my Ebook at Zenart I have created an online class about this journey. We will work with 6 modules, for you to start your mindful art journey. I can hardly wait to tell you more about it. I have also shared a great exercise from the talented artist Gloria Keh in Singapore on our Facebook page you find it through this link Please share your experiences of a mindful art practice, and if it’s anything special that you would like to know don’t hesitate to ask. Save #Meditation #intuitiveart #Artmeditation #Coloring #Mindfulpainting #mindfulart #Zenart #mindfulartjourney #freecoloringbook #expressiveart #reflectiveart #Coloringbook #Meditationandart

lanterns from the coloring book I must admit that I didn’t quite get the hype surrounding coloring for adults.  I even illustrated a whole coloring book just to start to grasp the concept. Naturally I had to see if it worked, so while testing it I started to grasp it quite quickly. Now I think that it’s mind blowing in it’s simplicity. When you sit down you don’t need to arrange a lot of things you can start in less than a minute. You get to pick the colors that make you feel good, and to me colors are important to how we feel. It’s a creative practice, without the pressure of what to draw. Anyone can do it, you need no training to start just any colors. It’s easy to grab and take with you, so you can color on travels or spare time in between tasks. It even works when you are tired as a way to unwind. I heard a friend say that she has to color straight away when she comes home from work to let go of the thoughts from the workday. It’s fun. Today coloring comes in all themes so you can color what you love from your favorite series to architecture. You can be creative and leave parts uncolored. I am giving you my Zenart coloring book for free. free coloring book Zenart coloring book #zenart #Coloring #mindfulart #Coloringtorelax #freecoloringbook #Coloringbookforadults #Downloadfreecoloringbook #Coloringformindfulness #10topreasonswhycoloringisagreatstressrelief #Zenartcoloringbook #Coloringbook #freecoloring

Coloring for adults have become extremely popular. Drawing is a great passion of mine so it took a while for me to understand what it was that made so many try coloring books. Last week I finished drawing a coloring book, and now I have just started to test it. I found that it’s the simplicity in the concept. You sit down and color without having to think about what to draw, how to draw or what you are going to create. Instead you pick the colors of your preference and fill in the blanks. The materials are simple and it’s a mindful activity. If you are like me and haven’t tried it before, I suggest you try it as this is the only way to find out if you like it. I wouldn’t say that it is art therapy, but it’s a creative activity that clams a busy mind. You can download my free E-Zenart coloring book at www.zenart.info Coloring from Zenart coloring book by Ingela Johansson Coloring from Zenart coloring book by Ingela Johansson #intuitiveart #zenart #Coloring #Coloringbook #adultcoloring #Color #mindfulart

Art by Ingela Johansson The #Quinsai art collection will be on display at Departures and Arrivals until the 20th of September. I painted the last part of the pieces life at the anniversary of #Villeroy&Boch Singapore at an event hosted by Tatler Home Singapore The paintings will be in the beautiful store until the 20th of September, every single product in the store is handmade and with a story. Hope you will enjoy the Quinsai paintings. Each painting has 20-25 layers and is painted on canvas with: Marble, sand, acrylic, ink, handmade papers, papers and resin. View original post

WELCOME TO AN EXHIBITION IN SINGAPORE Art by Ingela Johansson Welcome to an art exhibition featuring a curated selection ofthe Fragment Collection and Tales of Singapore by Swedish artist Ingela Johansson at DiLegno Gallery this Friday. The artist will walk you through the process of the artworks and the story behind the tales. The gallery is situated in a beautiful shophouse in a district with a lot of great restaurants. You will also find design furniture in wood and glass. DiLegno Gallery, Tanjong Katong Road 188, Singapore Reception between 4 – 8 pm A warm welcome. View original post

Art by Ingela Johansson Commission on a beautiful home in Malaysia. Art by Ingela Johansson View original post

“Don’t tell me that you think it’s green me I know it’s red.” Hollywood Beyond This is part of the lyrics to the song, and I do agree that many of us would say green and others would disagree. The different values and emotions that we attach and add to colors fascinates me. For many yellow means sun, and for some it is the fear of the unknown. The fast food restaurants know that it is the best color to use to make us eat faster. Red is the color of  love as someone else said it is also the color of our interior. I do believe that my own palette has become stronger since I moved to a country where nature is strong in it’s colors. It shows in my art, and you can still see that I am from Sweden as well. On Monday we will work on colors, how we relate to them and what happens when we connect them in ways that feels new and fresh to us. We will also experiment with different techniques, and abstract painting. If you feel like joining the workshop at Studio Miu tomorrow. please let me know. #Yellow #Money #StudioMiu #Abstractart #NgeeAnnCity #Artforadults #Colorsymbolism #artworkshop #Red #Green #acrylic #Color