Meditative drawing allows you to relax and isolate yourself from external problems, being left alone with yourself. With the help of Zen art, you can not only reveal your talent and feel like an artist, but also concentrate on solving important issues in a calm, and most importantly, creative atmosphere. Antistress coloring pages contain many details in the images and can be of interest even to professional artists.


The discoverer of this type of art therapy can be considered the illustrator Joanna Basford, who gained worldwide fame after publishing a series of coloring books for adults. Now anyone can take a finished drawing created by a professional illustrator and breathe new life into it with colored pencils and markers. Even if a person is far from art and has never visited an art studio, he can easily enjoy the creative process in such an extraordinary way as painting.



The effect of the process of such drawing is comparable in strength to meditative practice. therefore antistress coloring pages can be a worthy alternative to drugs for headaches and overexertion... The popularity of art therapy is also due to the rapid pace of life and the widespread use of various mental practices related to mindfulness.


The opportunity to sit down, just relax and take time for yourself has become an invaluable luxury for residents of megacities who are drowned in the routine of business and household chores. By coloring an illustration, a person can briefly clear the mind of disturbing problems, recover and take a fresh look at a particular life situation. Not everyone can cope with stress, apathy on their own, and the use of appropriate medications does not give a full discharge and only suppresses the emotions and feelings of a person.



Coloring books for adults cannot be called infantile art. Often, illustrations with patterns and mandalas are quite complex, have a plot, and in themselves can be considered a complete work of art. If earlier a person bought scanwords and Sudoku for leisure time at a kiosk, mastered some kind of handicraft or applied art, now they have been replaced by posters and antistress coloring pages. They do not require special skills and abilities, and after filling the pages with color, they can be safely hung on the wall along with the paintings.


Foreign experts began to actively use coloring books as a therapy for the elderly and people with limited physical and mental abilities due to the fact that this practice is much easier to master than other art projects. In addition, drawing is able to stimulate the areas of the brain responsible for movement, memory and creativity. The beneficial effect of meditative painting on the emotional and physical side of a person makes this therapy option one of the most attractive and inexpensive.

“The coloring pages we offer in our art therapy books simply give our readers exactly what they promise: more subjective well-being and less stress,” Anna Le Mer explains their success. Anna is the head of the department at the French publishing house Hachette, which also publishes books for creativity and inspiration. She talked about the relaxing effect of coloring books and why they are attractive regardless of age.

At the end of the article, you will find 6 coloring pages from the books "The Enchanted Forest" and "The Secret Garden" by Joanna Basford. You can download them, print them and test for yourself the magic power of art.

P sychologies: How do you explain the coloring book craze?

Anna Le Mer:Art therapy books aren't about coloring for the sake of coloring. Each book gives you the opportunity to indulge in a truly creative activity, which in itself is a source of pleasure.

When we focus on a drawing that only needs to be colored, the effect of meditation or a state of flow arises: it is at this moment that the positive effect of this practice becomes obvious. And this effect is quite real: many of our clients told us that thanks to these exercises, they got rid of headaches, decreased the feeling of tension and stress ... In addition, these drawings enable anyone to create something beautiful without having any knowledge and drawing skills.

Those who paint patterns have fewer complexes, which is always good!

The first books on art therapy appeared on the market for a long time and since then have been in constant demand. What is their secret?

Success not only does not subside, but becomes a worldwide phenomenon! From Scandinavia through Russia to China: in more than 20 countries, you can find coloring books on art therapy. Interest in them is largely based on the popularity of the practice of mindfulness and mindfulness meditation.

There is too much information in our society, the pace of life is too high, and the time we can spend on coloring becomes a time for ourselves when we can focus and free our minds from everyday problems. And the coloring pages are especially for those who are not only sensitive to stress, but also look closely at alternative medicine, try new methods of maintaining health, relaxation, and increasing life satisfaction.

Why are coloring pages in art therapy books interesting for both children and adults?

One of the main criticisms of these publications concerns the fact that they allegedly develop infantilism in us. This is absolutely not the case, moreover, some books, on the contrary, are very complex. Usually the drawings are very rich and made by real professional artists. It is a full-fledged work of art, which has graphic innovations and thematic diversity. Everyone will find something to their liking: traditional mandalas, floral and ethnic motifs, animals, stained glass ... Finally, we have complete freedom in choosing colors, which allows everyone to express not only their uniqueness as a person, but also their aesthetic inclinations.

The same path can be colored in an infinite number of ways, and this possibility of creative play is very inspiring.

Six coloring pages to make you feel better

Art therapy Is a direction in psychotherapy and psychological correction based on art and creativity. In the narrow sense of the word, art therapy usually means art therapy, aimed at influencing the patient's psycho-emotional state (ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art- therapy).

A negative psychological state caused by prolonged stress, depression, loneliness, troubles at work, troubles in family life, fears, phobias, etc. all these are indications for performing art therapy based on the visual arts: drawing, sculpting or creating an installation.

Art therapy coloring, or coloring antistress, in this case, they are universal, in the process of painting you can completely detach from the outside world, free yourself from sad thoughts and give free rein to fantasy. You just need to choose a picture, take pencils, felt-tip pens or colored gel pens and sit comfortably in an armchair or sofa, you can turn on your favorite music. No need to think over every detail of the drawing or specially select the color, trust your intuition and just enjoy the process of coloring.

Here we continue the theme of coloring pages for adults and bring you antistress pictures with flowers and floral patterns.

You can download all the art therapy coloring pages for adults here by clicking on the picture you like and choosing "Save picture as ...", and then print it on a printer and you can start coloring.

Good luck and peace of mind!

/ Coloring as Art Therapy

Art therapy coloring pages for adults

Art therapy coloring for adults / Coloring as Art Therapy

Art therapy coloring for adults / Coloring as Art Therapy

Art therapy coloring pages for adults

/ Coloring as Art Therapy

Art therapy coloring pages for adults

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Art therapy and anti-stress coloring pages for adults to color

Coloring book art therapy for adults - pattern

Art therapy coloring book for adults - pattern

Art therapy coloring book for adults - flowers, bird

Art therapy coloring book for adults flowers, bird

Art therapy coloring book for adults - flowers, pattern

Art therapy coloring book for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Coloring book art therapy for adults - flowers

Art therapy coloring book for adults

The technique was used in working with requests - Understand what is happening to me (life).

Step-by-step instruction.

1. Make a series of drawings on separate sheets of paper. (Prepare A4 and A3 sheets, paints, gouache, pencils). We draw what is happening now, the state for today. Draw in any order.
~ My life is like a dear.
~ My life is like a river.
~ My life is like a mountain.
~ My life is like food.
~ My life is like fire.
~ My life is like a game.

2. Tell us, what did you draw? How do you feel when you look at your drawing? How do these feelings respond in the body? Describe what is the symbol of the road for you? (rivers, mountains, food, fire, games). We work from the beginning to the end with one drawing. A person can describe it this way: "The road for me is the path to the goal." And in the picture he depicted the road, as in a fairy tale, with three branches, like, you go to the left, you will find figs with butter.

How can you explain to yourself what is happening in your life judging by this picture?

Variants of answer: I have no goal now, I don’t know where to go, even where I’ll go, I’ll lose something, etc. So how does your belief about the image compare with your life, with what is happening to you? Or, what is it about in your life?

3. Look at your drawing now? What do you feel? What's going on in the body? Do you want to paint over, remove or finish painting something? If yes, then we give the drawing and the client makes the desired changes for him. (you need to have white gouache available). The correction takes place in the present tense. Usually, after making changes to the drawing, even a small detail, there is a rapid internal metamorphosis. The client painted over the branches from the road, leaving the central one, in perspective he drew a tree from above and drew a gas station and a barbecue on the side.

4. Now we ask the client to tell from the drawing what his life is like a road (river, mountain, food, fire, game)? For example, the story may sound like this: “My life is a straight road, asphalt, not very wide, but not narrow, traffic on it in both directions. This is a road from one city to another. There are places on it where you can refuel the car, have a snack and relax. After that, you can safely drive on. I need to go where the tree can be seen. This is the purpose of my trip. I see him and I feel calm and joyful that very little is left before him. There is lightness in the body. "

(Pay attention to the sequence of execution of the drawings and the paper size. What is in priority, we judge by the symbol. We pay attention to the feelings and sensations in the body during the conversation on the drawing. In principle, those who are familiar with art therapy methods know that with this material to do for diagnostics).

Anyone with a little understanding of symbolism will find it easy to do this exercise. There is plenty of information about the current state. The unconscious simply happily shares with you in a language it understands. The correction takes place before your eyes.

2. DRAWINGS OF FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS

Purpose and priority goals:

Revealing the emotional background, actualized emotions, feelings, experiences; in a situation of acute stress - prompt assistance, response to traumatic experiences, emotional release;

"Working out" emotions and feelings, including suppressed ones;

Psychoprophylaxis of negative emotional experiences and their manifestations; emotional switching;

Promoting the development of spontaneity, reflection, the manifestation of true feelings;

Harmonization of the emotional state as a potential for overcoming destructive personality changes and personal growth;

Development of creativity.

Materials: sheets of white paper of various sizes, pencils, brushes, watercolors, bowls with water.

Mood stage

Participants are invited to write down on a piece of paper the name of emotions, feelings, experiences, states that they managed to remember. Further, from this list, it is proposed to choose the most powerful feeling, an experience that causes an emotional response at the moment.

When offering guidance, it is important to list a variety of terms that are used to describe a wide range of emotional experiences so that participants do not have intellectual difficulty in distinguishing between concepts when compiling the list.

Stage of individual work (development of a theme)

Instructions

Using a simple pencil on a sheet of A3 or A4 paper, draw a contour drawing of the emotion (feeling, experience, state) selected for "working through".

Perform the following manipulations with the paper (while paying attention to the thoughts and feelings that arise in the process of work): fold a sheet of paper with the outline of the drawing, then lower it for a while in water, straighten it, spread it on the table and only then paint the drawing simple pencil image.

Come up with a title and story for your painting to tell. Try to build dialogues between the depicted objects or parts of the drawing.

Discussion and reflective analysis stage

Participants place their works in the office space, sit in a circle for discussion, verbalization of emotions and feelings that they experienced in the process of artistic creation. Everyone, at will, shows their drawing, tells its name, tells a story.

Often, participants change the original name, because in the process of work, the created image is transformed, and therefore, the concept changes, and the hidden meanings are realized. In the process of discussion, one can correctly use “hint questions” to facilitate the awareness and transformation of traumatic experiences into resource ones. It is especially important to create a safe atmosphere of trust, openness, empathy, so that the feedback provided does not cause traumatic feelings and is adequately perceived by the person. This can be a rewarding experience for building constructive communication strategies and new emotional contacts.

The art therapy session ends with the modification of the created art product in accordance with the author's wishes.

In general, the expected practical result of art therapy work is the transfer of the experience gained into the everyday interpersonal behavior of the subject outside the therapeutic group.

Note.

It is important for the depiction of emotions and feelings to encourage participants to create spontaneous images, avoiding, if possible, plot and stereotyped pictures. Unstructured drawing: lines, contours, spots help to level the cognitive pattern, promote creativity and free self-expression, and stimulate self-knowledge processes.

A huge positive potential lies in the possibility of multiple transformations in the process of working on the image: a slightly noticeable contour is refracted with a simple pencil, changes the outlines of the depicted object when the paper is crumpled, and then dipped into water and smoothed again. Further, with the help of watercolors, the drawing is given color, as if "showing", colorizing the conceived image.

Working with watercolors on crumpled, damp paper has a deep psychological meaning and a noticeable therapeutic effect, since it allows you to achieve greater expressiveness and, at the same time, emotional release. One of the psychological mechanisms of emotional response is the peculiarity of watercolors as a visual material.

Source: Oksana Rozdorskaya

3. Exercise for working with personal boundaries "MAP OF MY LIFE"

Instructions:

"Draw a map of your life, where you and all the people around you are countries. You are of different sizes, you have different relationships. With someone you have common borders, with someone you do not. With someone you can border on water With someone you can have a certain common zone - a customs union or the “Schengen Agreement.” With someone a simplified visa regime, with someone more complicated.

And then look at your drawing and remember what the boundaries were, say, five years ago?

And sometimes it helps to see many things. For example:

Maybe five years ago you had many close borders and ties, many contacts and conflicts. And that is why now you are "oversaturated with communication" and have become ... an island ... Which no one touches or captures.

Conversely, you may have shifted from isolation to close, strong bonds.

Maybe your country is constantly being invaded by other countries, and you do not know how to resist?

Or maybe you yourself are seizing everyone around and reclaiming lands? (it is difficult to admit this, but in every person there is such a desire - just the scales are different)

Maybe you divide the countries into allies with whom you have simplified modes of relationship, and into opponents - with whom you build fences and prepare companies against them ...

And when you see the basic patterns, it is easier for you to understand where to aim. Do you need to learn to defend or do you need to learn to live in peace and not attack. Do you need to learn to build relationships or should you allow yourself to take a break and be alone "

4. Art therapy technique "DRAWING IN A CIRCLE"

The technique works very well at the first consultation, in a situation of difficulty in formulating a request, vague client expectations.

To work, you need a set of various visual materials: paper of different sizes, pencils, felt-tip pens, pastels, watercolors, gouache.

1. We offer the client to relax, concentrate on his feelings here and now, and draw a circle on the sheet of the color and size that he wants at the moment.

2. Then - fill it with a picture.

3. Next, we discuss the drawing, actualize thoughts, feelings, sensations. Let's clarify: did the state change during the drawing process? Do you want to change something. If necessary, the client corrects the drawing - draws, paints, erases, etc.

Of course, the drawing carries some diagnostic information. As in the analysis of projective techniques, we pay attention to the size of the circle, its placement on the sheet, the thickness of the lines, the presence or absence of color, etc. However, the therapeutic approach presupposes, first of all, not the interpretation of the drawing, but following the emotions and feelings of the client. It is important that he sees how he perceives his work.

You can use the drawing in a circle and in group work. First, everyone draws their own circle on a large common sheet, then the empty space is jointly filled. The process can have a powerful resource effect, but sometimes it can provoke the release of negative emotions.

The most valuable thing in this technique is the opportunity here and now to work out the situation, to correct it in the right direction.

5. Technique "MAP OF GOALS"

1. Trace your hand on paper and get the outline of your future card.
2. Fill the map with different landscapes: designate mountains, plains, rivers, waterfalls, glaciers, gorges, deserts, forests, meadows, seas, oceans, etc.
3. Use the checkbox to indicate the goal you are striving for.
4. Mark the starting point on your route
5. Draw a dotted line that has a beginning and an end.
6. Indicate where you are on the path now.
7. Write down the symbols - define your mountains, trees, seas ...
8. Compare them with your emotions, sensations, states.

Information that the figure reveals:
- The nature of the route speaks of how a person sets himself obstacles in life and how he overcomes them
- What landscape did the target flag fall into: a desert, a waterfall ... and what does that mean to you?
- If on your route you pass all landscapes - you are a creative person, no - you are a performer.
- If the entrance and exit coincide, the person comes to where he started, but already one level higher.
- Pay attention to what emotions you experienced before reaching the goal
- Entrance at the bottom, exit at the top - a person goes from practice to theory, and, accordingly, vice versa.
- Entrance on the left, exit on the right - the person brings the matter to the end, although he is very anxious at the beginning.
- Entrance to the right, exit to the left - intuition, a sense of the new is developed.
- Divide into three parts diagonally and vertically not the page, but the map: the left part is the past, the central part is the present, the right part is the future. The upper part is thoughts, the central part is ideas, plans, the lower part is actions.


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