The Beauty of Zentangle®: Inspirational Examples from 137 Tangle Artists Worldwide

by Suzanne McNeill CZT, Cindy Shepard

Ignite your creativity with beautiful Zentangle-inspired art! The Beauty of Zentangle presents inspiring original designs Zentangle(R) is fast becoming a worldwide phenomenon, attracting individuals from all walks of life. Created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, the Zentangle method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. The Beauty of Zentangle celebrates this simple but elegant craft with hundreds of sensational one-of-a-kind designs from around the world. Selected by the editors of Design Originals, the #1 publisher of Zentangle art, this amazing collection of Zentangle-inspired masterpieces encompasses a wide range of styles. 137 tangle artists are represented, and as a bonus, they have shared 37 of their favorite tangles for you to learn, shown here with easy visual step-by-step instructions. This invitation-only collection of the very best Zentangle-inspired art includes stunning masterpieces from breakthrough artists and CZTs like Suzanne McNeill, Cindy Shepard, Marie Browning, Sandy Steen Bartholomew, and many more. These artists' inventive tangles are at the forefront of a new wave of creative expression and personal freedom!

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

184 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2013

Reviews

[C.c. Sadler]

I am featured in this book!

[Christine]

Checked this out from the library. Now that there’s so many coloring books and such that have pictures broken up in a way very similar to Zentangles, the art is starting to look dated to my eye, as it gets looped in with all those coloring books.

Some of the most impressive drawings bring in realistic drawings with pattern filled in using the Zentangle, or outlines of a recognizable item filled in with the Zentangle patterns (cat, nesting dolls, etc.), or covering a 3D items with the Zentangle patterns, such as a gourd or a piano,among others.

There were a number of cute patterns where they give you step by step instructions at the back.

So, if you’ve never seen this book and have a library nearby, it’s worth a read; if not, I’d recommend passing on it, and. Abe reading one of the more technical how to style books instead.

[Susan]

This book has so many beautiful zentangle designs and the many ways these artists have incorporated them into their wares is phenomenal. There are zentangle decorated bookmarks to full size pianos and everything in between. This is a book that can be perused over and over again.....

[Sarah Yasin]

This book has not aged well what with the internet and all.

[Georgina]

There's only a handful of Tangles in the book, so if you are looking for new doodles, you will be disappointed. However if you are interested in seeing what other people have done with the Zentangle doodle method, then you will love this book. While there were many outstanding applications of the Zentangle style, there were also some subpar filler pieces that I suspect that the editors were encouraged to include because they were works from Certified Zentangle Teachers (CZT). Gotta make those folks who plunked down their money at CZT training feel like "real" artists by getting them published in a book, right?

But don't let my cynicism deter you from checking out the book. Doodling is fun, and if you are inspired by what you see, grab a pen and get doodling. You do not need a certification for that.

[Christine]

A Very Interesting and Eyeopening Read

I found this book to be a good all-around view of the Sent angle art and many, many diverse applications of the principles that are a part of the Zentangle principles and some of the inspiring outcomes of its practice. The book also provides numerous steps outs or instructions on how to draw a good number of specific tangles. A great overview of the variety of outcomes that can be derived from various different artists. Well worth the time to read especially for a newcomer to the practice of A entangle but, of equal interest to a seasoned Practitioner.

[Tristy]

I know folks are crazy for Zentangles but I'm not one of them. For me, everything looks the same and even in this book, highlighting 137 different Zentangle artists, only about 3 stand out as looking like unique interesting work. These stand-out artists used the Zentangle method on with new mediums, like quilting & ceramics. Otherwise, this book was a snooze-fest for me.

[Susie]

If you are into Zentangle and you want to drool over the artwork of Zentangle artists then you might want to pick up a copy of this book. I checked it out of our library and I am stunned by the beautiful artwork filling the pages. This is not a how-to book however. It does not instruct, it inspires.

[Andria]

The cool thing about this book was that it showed how people turn the doodles into actual art, not just copies of a tangle. It had examples of jewelry and pianos with tangles on them. Some of the tangles even looked like what I would probably produce, just average doodles. However, some were absolutely amazing.

[Jannah]

Neat artwork from Zentanglers worldwide, with tutorials on how to do a couple basic forms at the end with really easy-to-follow instructions. I ended up trying out 3/4 of the designs in the back. Pretty neat!

[Jenny Lynn]

Some cool ideas for art projects. I tried out some of the patterns and shapes for an upcoming library display about different styles of art and it turned out very nicely, even though my hand was killing me after drawing some of those teeny tiny patterns.

[Karen]

Beautiful and inspirational. Lays Flat for learning new tangles. Love it!

[Gracin]

This is like an art collection of Zentangle drawings. They're pretty good but I actually prefer finished doodle art over the characteristic zentangle drawings.

[Serena]

I almost feel guilty for calling this book read. Honestly it was a WHOLE bunch of pretty pictures. Awesomely pretty, but very little reading.

[Dawn]

Beautiful and inspirational

[Liz Germany]

Beautiful book of Zentangle and Zentangle Inspired Art.

[Samantha McGuire The Writers Web Archive]

This book has a large variety of beautiful zentangle mixed media art! A great addition for any fan of zentangle art.

[Nancy Nieslawski]

Creativity abounds

[Susan DELLNER]

excellent intro to Zentangle art

[Marge]

Beautiful

[April Bauer]

Interesting artwork, rudimentary instructions.