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How to draw CUENC

Zentangle pattern: Cuenc. Image © Linda Farmer and TanglePatterns.com. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. You may use this image for your personal non-commercial reference only. The unauthorized pinning, reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal.Greetings y’all. Happy weekend to ya.

Today’s fun (and easy!) woven-style Cuenc tangle is from Spanish CZT Carmen Menchón, it’s her third tangle on the site.

Carmen writes,

Recently we went on a trip to Cuenca’s abstract art museum. It is in one of the famous 16th-century “hanging houses” and preserves some original moldings, ceilings, and frescoes.

I wasn’t familiar with Cuenca, Spain or its hanging houses so naturally I was compelled to check them out. There are many photos of them in Google Images, the houses are perched precariously on the edges of mountain cliffs as this photo from Wikipedia shows us:

As Wikipedia explains:

The Casas Colgadas (Hung Houses) is a complex of houses located in Cuenca, Spain. In the past, houses of this kind were frequent along the eastern border of the ancient city, located near the ravine of the river Huécar. Today, however, there are only a few of them remaining. Of all of these structures, the most well-known is a group of three with wooden balconies.

Their origin remains uncertain, though there is proof of their existence in the 15th century. Throughout their history they have been refurbished several times. The most recent took place during the 1920s.

They have been used as individual homes, council houses, and in the past hosted a mesón, a type of restaurant, and the Museo de Arte Abstracto Español (Spanish Abstract Art Museum), in Cuenca.

Carmen tells us more about her tangle:

Based on one of those old moldings, I have deconstructed “Cuenc”.

It requires a bit of concentration and placing the “parentheses” in its place under the “rice shapes” so that when we extend them they come together elegantly. Once you get that it’s not so hard to get the rest of it.

I found Cuenc surprisingly easy to get the hang of 😉 It’s a cool deconstruction by Carmen, I hope you enjoy it too …

Carmen illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Cuenc below. She includes three beautiful tiles featuring Cuenc with the Zentangle®-originals Stiritup, Arukas, and Diva Dance.

How to draw the Zentangle pattern Cuenc, tangle and deconstruction by Carmen Menchón. Image copyright the artist and used with permission, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Image copyright the artist and used with permission, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. These images are for your personal offline reference only. Please feel free to refer to the images to recreate this tangle in your personal Zentangles and ZIAs. However the artist and TanglePatterns.com reserve all rights to the images and they must not be publicly pinned, altered, reproduced or republished. (Small side note: if you look at the legalese in Pinterest, you are legally responsible for obtaining permission to post every photo that gets ‘Pinned’. Giving credit or sharing the source link doesn’t count.) Thank you for respecting these rights. “We must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy.” ~ Albus Dumbledore

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Check out the tag carmenn for more of Carmen’s tangles on TanglePatterns.com.

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7 comments to How to draw CUENC

  • Ria Matheussen

    Special and very nice, sure I’m gonna use this one, like it very much! Thanks for sharing!

  • Barbara

    I love this! How imaginative! So very cool.

  • Sue zanker

    Very tempting to tru, thanks for sharing!

  • LLS

    That is high praise coming from Ria! I keep seeing her name, so I looked up to see if she has any patterns to her credit… ONLY 33!!!! Wow! She has some beautiful patterns that I am going back to try. .
    Carmen, This pattern is beautiful! Thank you for taking the time to come up with a simple plan of action and sharing it with us!
    Linda, I am amazed by the info that you share with us! Those hanging houses are beautiful, but I will confess that I would be afraid to go out on the balcony! Thank you so much for broadening my little world!

  • Merev

    For my really first tangle, is beautiful Thankk you so much,
    Carmmen and Linda
    Now I have a hard work to do – it will be A day full of zenitude ?

  • Carmen Menchón

    Thank you all very much for your kind comments, they makes me feel really happy.
    I have discovered that deconstructing patterns is something that hooks me, I go around photographing everything that I think has potential and then expend hours playing and enjoying. At the moment I have 3, will I reach Ria’s 33???? There I go!?

    And Linda you are the best, not only publishing the step by step but also the story behind it and even researching on wikipedia. I love knowing these things about patterns when I draw and teach them.

  • Jolanda Gentilezza

    It’s a very beautiful tangle! Thank you! Don’t stop, I really want more…

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