I’m delighted to say Belgian CZT Ria Matheussen is back with us today with another of her lovely tangles, Medi.
Ria has so many great tangles on the site and Medi is her 35th, be sure to check out the rest of her impressive collection of deconstructions.
Ria writes,
I’ll always love to tangle but at the moment I’m also learning Gothic Calligraphy and I hope to combine those two styles on some of my drawings. In the mean time, I have fallen in love with the medieval miniatures. Those miniatures were made to brighten up manuscripts and texts. .. We can discover them in all variations: very tiny but also very big. There were made thousands of them and I was overwhelmed to see some little ones in reality on an exposition in Germany a few years ago.
So, while looking on the Internet at these little treasures, I saw a drawing of which I knew, that could be a new tangle. You can see what I mean here.
That was just a start because a tangle has to be the same upside down and so, after doing some “work”, I finally got what I wanted and gave it the name: MEDI(eval).
Here Ria’s lovely ZIA Zendala has Medi framing the Zentangle®-originals Crescent Moon and a Doodah-embellished Hollibaugh.
Did you know the word miniature originally comes from the red lead pigment used in ancient illuminated manuscripts:
A miniature (from the Latin verb miniare, “to colour with minium”, a red lead) is a small illustration used to decorate an ancient or medieval illuminated manuscript; the simple illustrations of the early codices having been miniated [to paint with red lead or vermilion] or delineated with that pigment. ~ Wikipedia
Both the Blackletter Textura Gothic calligraphy and the medieval miniatures are quite the intriguing fields of study Ria has gotten into to complement her tangling practice.
Ria gives us tips for tangling Medi:
It is easier to start with some dots to become equal distances. There are several ways to form this border but I have chosen to draw all the “leaves” in one direction, followed by “leaves” in the other direction.
To finish I turned the paper upside down and formed the opposite on the background. It is easier than it looks at first sight. When you like you can bring variation in the form of the “leaves” but I have chosen to keep it very simple.
Ria illustrates the step-by-step instructions for drawing Medi below, “On my little ZIA I wrote a few words in Textura of the 11th- 12th century. It is not perfect already but that is not necessary. In the border, you will find Medi, Flux, Javik, Fescu, Eze, Fricle, Zinger and some curls.”
As you enjoy any of the tangles on the site, please leave a comment of thanks and encouragement to show the artists you appreciate them for sharing their creativity to inspire yours. Your thanks helps motivate them to continue to share! And please share a link to your favorite tangles on social media. Thanks!
Check out the tag riam for more of Ria’s tangles on TanglePatterns.com.
Wishing you a Joyous Passover!
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Share your tangle on TanglePatterns
Everyone is invited to share patterns on TanglePatterns.com, you do NOT need to be a CZT. In order for patterns to be considered for publication they must be submitted to me by email. In other words you have to let me know about them.
For a submission to qualify as a tangle it must be a genuine pattern (“a repeated decorative design”) and not “a thing to draw”.
From The Book of Zentangle:
“Keep it Non-representational. Zentangle artwork is intended to be non-representational. Zentangle’s elemental strokes are also non-representational.
We don’t teach complex elements such as hearts, stars or flowers. Tangles are also non-representational.”
Remember that tangles never start with pencil planning.
"A tangle has no pre-planning with pencil guidelines, grids or dots, no erased lines."
If you need a refresher on what makes a tangle, read the A PATTERN IS NOT ALWAYS A TANGLE page on the ZENTANGLES menu bar at the top of any page.
For details on how to submit your pattern for consideration visit the SUBMIT YOUR PATTERN page on the top menu bar of any page on the site. On that menu you will find these two pages:
The first page includes instructions on how to prepare and send your JPGs. (Please save me time and do not send PDFs). It also includes a link to this PDF submission form.
When your examples include additional tangles from the site, please list them in your email. (This saves me time and my memory some wear and tear.)
If your pattern is posted on your blog, attach your steps and tile JPGs to your email and be sure your email includes the direct URL so I can link to it.
And remember, to quote Zentangle's co-founders Rick and Maria: tangles should be "magical, simple and easy to create", non-objective patterns of repetitive strokes that are easy to teach and offer a high degree of success to tanglers of all ages.
"Keep the tangles as little like 'drawing something' as possible."
.oOo.
Related Links
- Looking for tangles by Artist or Type? For details visit the ABOUT > HOW TO FIND TANGLES BY ARTIST OR TYPE page on the top menu bar of any page on the site.
- What is a Zentangle? — if you are new to the Zentangle Method, start here for the fundamentals.
- Zentangle terminology — a glossary of terms used in this art form.
- How to use the site — an excellent free video tutorial showing how to use the site as well as pointing out lots of useful features you might have missed.
- Linda's List of Zentangle-Original Patterns — here is the complete list of original tangles (aka "official tangles") created and introduced by founders Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, including those not published online. If you are new to the Zentangle Method I highly recommend learning a few of the published Zentangle classics first.
- "A Zentangle has no up or down and is not a picture of something, so you have no worries about whether you can draw a hand, or a duck. You always succeed in creating a Zentangle." Thus patterns that are drawings of a recognizable naturalistic or actual object, figure, or scene, are not tangles. A pattern is not always a tangle — here's what makes a tangle. TIP: tangles never start with pencil planning.
- Un motif n’est pas toujours un tangle — Qu’est-ce qu’un tangle ?
- Un diseño no es siempre un tangle — ¿Qué es un tangle?
- How to submit your pattern deconstruction to TanglePatterns
- For lots of great FREE tutorials on TanglePatterns, click on the TUTORIALS link in the pink alphabetic menu bar below the tangle images at the top of any page.
- Strings! Have we got STRINGS! Click on the STRINGS link in the pink alphabetic menu bar below the tangle images at the top of any page for 250 different (free) Zentangle-starters. More than enough for any lifetime!
- Never miss a tangle! FREE eMAIL NEWSLETTER - visit the SUBSCRIBE page on the top menu bar of any page on the site and sign up to get notices delivered free to your inbox.
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Ria – Thank you for your tangle, Medi. I particularly like the impression it gives to me on your sample tile that it “wraps around” an invisible pole.
Thank you very much for always giving kind comments, I do appreciate that!
What a lovely tangle to play with and explore! Simple and versatile and perfect for so many spaces <3 And I quite enjoyed reading about medieval miniatures 🙂
I’m glad you like this new tangle and I wish you fun while exploring. Thank you!
Lovely leaves! Linda, I also like your variation with the serrated leaf edges.
Thanks Margaret, naturally I was inspired by Ria’s version in her Zendala 🙂
Thank you for adding Medi and wish you nice Easter days!
Thank you very much Margaret for your kind comment. I’m glad you like it and hope you can use it in your wonderful work!
Wonderful new tangle! Ready to explore! Thank you!
So glad you like this one, thank you very much Beatrice!!!
Ria, you are so clever. I bet I could see some of those old documents/book on line as well. Maybe come up with my first tangle? Thank you for the information and another beautiful tangle.
I know I will be practicing it and using it many times.
Thank you for your kind compliment. I’m sure that there are still little treasures, hidden, deep in the Middle Ages. So I wish you luck and fun while searching and practicing!