Another mandala: I used some overlapping knotted ribbons according to the samples I played with before, and it was fun - took me two whole days to finish the 8x8 inch picture. This is probably the last one I’ll make for a while, I’m utterly mandala’d out :-) But I can’t promise.
Here is a short step-out:
And here are some other views for you to inspect:
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Remember that all images are Copyright Eni Oken.
I've been MIA for over 20 days for a good reason: my husband and I went on a month-long adventure which included crossing the Atlantic on a cruise from Europe to Brasil, with some dear friends. Before leaving I selected some pictures to work on while aboard: this one is based on a Gothic artifact found in the John Leighton’s Suggestion of Designs (1880) found in archive dot org. Inktense pencils and Pitt Brush pens with a waterbrush.
This picture contains a small greek artifact found in the John Leighton’s Suggestion of Designs (1880). The design is described as being a Lotus or Lily, and I made it upside-down. I also included the beautiful braided tangle Gaut (Sandra Strait). Inktense pencils and Pitt Brush pens with a waterbrush.
Another picture with tangle Amplion (Nina Dreher-Goddertz). I also included a historic fragment taken from Herbert Cole’s Heraldry and Floral forms (1922, found on archive dot org). It's a beautiful design of a 15th century French coffer. Tangled and shaded using Inktense pencils and Pitt Brush pens with a waterbrush.
Every once in a while I like to take a break and try something different than drawing. A couple of weeks ago I watched a several videos on how to make crepe paper flowers and even made a few! It was a fun week! From dying the paper to shaping the petals and making the core, it was a fun activity. But don't worry, the fad didn't last too long and I’m back to tangling now., just didn't have the time to post these here.
My second picture inspired by Inktober Tangles 2024 including Heart Nouveau (Romi Marks), Feist (Stephanie Jennifer) and half of an S Bahn (Midori Furuhashi). I’m REALLY in love with this picture, still using Inktense pencils and Pitt Brush pens with a waterbrush. When I participate in Inktober, I tend to do it a little erratically, picking the tangles I like instead of going in order.
The name of this picture should be “do as I say, don’t do as I do”. I often tell my students “don’t outline your work otherwise it looks cartoony”. And my hand did just that! Here I have two tangles from Inktober Tangles 2024: Amplion by Nina Dreher-Goeddertz and Heart Nouveau by Romi Marks. Drawn using Inktense paint pads and Pitt brush pens with a waterbrush.
Finally available to the public, this is probably one of my most important classes regarding how to create your own work with intuitive classic Zentangle. It has a whooping 10 hours of recorded videos, and covers a TON of material on how to deal with the biggest question of all: how to combine tangles with strings (and make it your own). You can learn a lot more about it at https://enioken.teachable.com/p/zentanglematchmaking
This picture is an adaptation of a design found in a book by Augusto Garneri (1921) at archive dot org and is described as taken from a Celtic Anglo Saxon manuscript miniature. Looking at other ornament books I found similar designs, so it was probably popular motif in Celtic manuscript illumination. I mixed some techniques there and it took me forever to complete! Tangled with inktense pencils, brown micron and Pitt brush artist pens.
I'm in love with all the Art Deco architectural jewels of Los Angeles. The Pantages is one of my favorites, and here you see a small fragment from that magnificent theater, combined with Sunbelt, a tangle by Jody Genovese. Drawn using Inktense paint pads and Pitt brush pens with a waterbrush. I'm very happy with the dramatic results!
This is a picture that I created while aboard my last cruise crossing the Atlantic. Before crossing westbound we visited Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Tenerife Islands, and I captured some of the details of the beautiful Parish of St. Francisco de Asís. I have to confess that this picture feels a bit “too pink” for my taste!