Art is a practice to inspire self-awareness, ease anxiety, and promote personal growth. During a time where many circumstances outside of our control fuel anxiety, we turn to art as a tool for healing and bringing calm into the world. We are excited to offer this new how-to" series that will hopefully inspire you in this time of uncertainty.
The best way to begin this series is with a vision board. Vision boards are incredibly useful and inspiring as visualization is one of the most powerful activities. If you're ready to follow your dreams, continue reading on below for Agnes's tutorial on how to envision and create a vision board with stuff you find in your home and why it's important.
CREATING YOUR VISION BOARD
We are living in a very stressful time—many circumstances outside of our control fuel anxiety and worry. As a way of mitigating our stress and our fears, you can choose to focus inward. You can control what you think. You can choose to focus on the positive you see. You can look at what brings you calm and what brings you joy. It's important to take the time to focus on where you are now and where you want to be when you have the chance to move forward.
Creating a discovery board, or a few will allow you to focus inward, reflect on words that help calm our minds, and provide inspiration and happiness. Think of this process as a scavenger hunt, a journey of discovery.
FINDING YOUR INSPIRATION
The first step involves flipping through magazines you already have at home and cutting out words that resonate with you. It's important to begin looking for words and phrases that inspire you. Using magazines you already have at home allows you to be resourceful, repurposing the pages to create new art. Looking at something you have already seen with fresh eyes is an important aspect of the process to go through as it allows you to appreciate what you have. Moreover, flipping through a physical magazine, and tearing things out also helps calm the mind through using our hands.
For my vision board, I looked through travel magazines to cut out my inspiration, but you can look through any publication that you value. Maybe your quotes come from home decor magazines or fashion magazines. As long as it resonates with you, it's all that matters.
WHY VISION BOARDS?
Part of the idea behind this project is that art should be something we don't "think too much about" but rather let our hands lead, and our minds follow. By connecting with things that resonate on a gut level, you uncover subconscious beliefs you might not be aware of before.
During the process of making vision boards, take the time to reflect on words that you find essential or inspiring. Start adding those words together to form guided paths of your beliefs. Ask yourself the following:
What do you want to bring into my life?
What do you value right now?
This journey will help you identify what you gravitate towards, what you want more of in your life, and what ultimately brings you the most joy.
GETTING STARTED
Before getting started on your vision board, ask yourself the following questions:
Where are you?
What do you value?
Where do you want to be right now?
Where do you want to go?
It’s important to participate in self-reflection.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
For this project, you should be able to find everything you need in your house.
8.5x11 Poster (this is a good starting size, you can go bigger)
Magazines/ Publications of your choice ( limit to 2-3)
Scissors
Tape or Glue Stick
4 STEPS
STEP 1: Get your supplies. Limit it to 2-3 magazines that resonate with you.
STEP 2: Cut out/tear the word and phrases that stand out to you. Think about what words jump out of you, what you find beautiful or interesting, and what speaks ultimately speaks to you. It's important during this process to not overthink it or look on the computer for ideas.
STEP 3: Organize. Take all of the words, phrases, and images you cut and organize in piles based on ideas, colors, and type.
STEP 4: Paste. Glue cutouts on to the posters. Create as many vision boards as you chose
IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER
Remember, there is no right way to create a vision board. Make the vision board yours and tear the paper, cut it into circles, whatever you like. The journey is just as important as the end result. It's a meditative process, don’t rush and take your time. Another way to think about it as a manifest collage, cut out the words you want to see more of. Visualize and envision that for your future. At the end, what you find may in fact surprise you.