MINDFUL DRAWING TUTORIAL: AURA
As part of #mindfultober 2024 I have created a series of free Mindful Drawing Tutorials, so that if you like the idea of joining in with Mindfultober but don’t know where to start, or perhaps you just like to have a little bit of guidance and support as you draw, so you can just relax and enjoy the process, these are for you!
This tutorial can also be found as a real-time draw with me style tutorial on YouTube, so if you prefer to digest this in video format, feel free to hop on over there!
SUPPLIES
To follow along, you will need:
paper - I recommend having a few different colors which you like.
scissors
glue
a pencil + eraser
art materials to draw with - Use whatever you have to hand and are comfy using!
STEP 1: CUT A LARGE CIRCLE FROM COLORED PAPER
This is going to form The head of your flower, so make it nice and big, but a size that fits easily on your background paper and leaves enough room for a stem and some leaves.
I didn’t draw around anything circular to create my circle - I really love things being a little bit organic and wonky in my collages, but if you find that really tricky, feel free to grab a small plate or bowl to draw around to get your circle shape, and cut it out.
STEP 2: DRAW LINES RADIATING FROM THE CENTRE OF YOUR CIRCLE
Use your art materials to add lines to your circle which radiate out from the centre to the edge. You don’t need to worry about your lines meeting in the centre of the circle because we will be covering that part with another paper circle.
TIP: Use a piece of scrap paper under your circle, and when you draw each line, continue it right off the edge of the circle and onto the scrap paper to ensure your drawn lines go all the way to the very edge of your circle.
I wanted my flower to feel warm - the prompt aura for me brings to mind things like warmth, light and the sun radiating out from a central point, so I wanted to convey that idea with the colors I used, but you can pick any color to work with which feels right for you!
STEP 3: CUT OUT A SECOND and third paper CIRCLE WHICH gradually decrease in size
Next, cut out 2 more paper circles which will go inside your largest circle. Experiment with the size of these so they feel roughly right with the circle you already have (you don’t want to cover up too much of the lovely lines you just added!).
I had 3 variations of orange/yellow paper, so I wanted to create a gradual effect in the order i placed them in, but this can also work really well using the same color of paper for each circle because we will be adding drawing and patterns to them, so you can introduce more color and contrast by considering the type of patterns you will add to them.
STEP 4: DRAW MARKS AND PATTERNS ON YOUR MEDIUM AND SMALL CIRCLES
Now we can add more marks and patterns on our circles to add a bit more depth to them. I like to add texture and interest with the way I combine patterns, so to contrast to the first circle where the pattern radiated from the centre out, the second pattern followed the shape of the circle in concentric rings toward the centre, and the third pattern evenly covers the circle.
TIP: If it’s difficult to draw the pattern off the very edge of your paper circle (it was difficult for me to do that with the dots of my smallest circle) then just use your scissors to trim a tiny amount of the circle off when you have finished drawing - this will ensure your pattern looks seamless all the way to the cut edge.
STEP 5: CUT A STEM AND LEAVES
Before you begin cutting out your leaves, try sketching a few options of different leaf shapes on your scrap paper first - there are so many different ways to draw leaves, and just making very tiny adjustments to the shape or proportions can give you a really different effect! If you want to explore different leaf shapes more, then do check out my FREE Botanical Doodling Workbook as it walks you through a few different types!
Once you are happy with a leaf shape, cut out either 2 or 4 of them depending on how large they are.
TIP: To get a pair of symmetrical leaves, try folding your collage paper in half and cutting out 2 at a time!
STEP 6: DRAW MARKS + PATTERNS ON YOUR STEM + LEAVES
Adding a little more texture to your stem and leaves is a really nice way to refine your collage and make it more interesting. I liked the idea of continuing the ‘aura’ idea with the leaves and so wanted to create a smaller version of the shape within the larger leaf shape.
I kept my marks and patterns really simple and just drew parallell lines because I want the main focus of this collage to be the flower, but it could be so much fun to add really fancy leaves and do something even more decorative too!
STEP 7: GLUE YOUR COLLAGE PIECES DOWN
Once you are happy with your leaf and stem shapes, and the marks and textures on them, we can glue everything down! Make sure you use your scrap paper for gluing your collage pieces so you don’t get glue where you don’t want it!
Now you should have a lovely, simple folk-inspired flower collage - gorgeous!
MINDFULTOBER
If you are taking part in Mindfultober 2024 and want to be in with a chance of winning one of the prizes, don’t forget to share your collage on Instagram, include #mindfultober2024 in your caption and tag me @melrye and the other hosts @shelleyskail @thecolorbirdie and @ju_he_sch on Instagram *in your images* so we can see your lovely pieces (Instagram no longer notifies people of being tagged in captions! Argh!)
You’ll also need to save the image below and re-post it when you share your art (it can be the second image!) and let us know in your caption how you found the process - all the details can be found in this blog post.
Happy art-making!
