I came across the term neurographics by accident. I often browse Pinterest looking for inspiration for artwork that I could offer to our children. It was there that I came across artistic scribbles, which became an inspiration for many artworks, more or less related to this artistic-therapeutic method, aimed at working with one’s own subconscious.
Leaving aside the therapeutic aspect of these works at the outset and focusing on the artistic side, scribbles accompany children from an early age. As soon as they manage to grab crayons, children passionately draw lines and loops, which we could successfully consider the basis of neurographics.
Simplified neurographics for kids
When planning to create a neurographic drawing, we don’t need many art supplies. Something to draw neurographic lines, such as markers, felt-tip pens or dark crayons, and something to color: crayons, felt-tip pens, watercolors. And if you feel like going wild, even colored sand.
Step 1
We start working on the drawing by drawing a grid of abstract lines. Just scribble. Children like this approach to drawing. Especially if they think they have no artistic talent. Scribble should be spontaneous. It doesn’t matter whether your drawings will be full of straight lines or loops. Remember not to leave tails, i.e. the end segments of the lines on the image. Draw the lines to the end of the paper.
Step 2
Now it’s time to smooth out the connections between the crossing lines. If you’re using regular markers for kids, the original lines will probably still be visible. Permanent markers, promarkers, or crayons look much better on the drawing. However, when drawing with children, these minor inconveniences didn’t bother us.
You can thicken some lines to change the depth of the image. This will add a bit of drama and highlight the elements you are emphasizing in this way. The thickening does not have to be the same for all lines. You can play with the thickness of the lines, creating different kinds of bubbles and blobs.
This is how your eyes see neuron cells, connected together in a neural network.
If at this stage the graphic you are creating seems too empty to you, you can add more connections between the main arteries of the drawing. This way you will create a denser network.
Step 3
Time for color. There is space between the drawn lines, which you can give any color. If the work is to be relaxing, you can choose the children’s favorite art supplies. Some prefer markers, others prefer crayons. Everyone has their own preferences. However, you can treat this project as an opportunity to discover new painting techniques. If you have not used watercolors before, you can use them now. If you rarely use markers on a daily basis, this can also be a great opportunity. It is worth considering in advance what art materials will be used to give the graphics color, and choosing the appropriate marker for drawing the lines. It would be a shame to ruin the drawing by smudging the drawn lines while giving the drawing color.
The graphic does not have to be filled with color one hundred percent. You can leave certain spaces without color, or shade them slightly. Maybe the color suits you only in the central part. Or maybe quite the opposite, you want to leave the central part black and white, wrapping it in colors.
Neurographics – searching for shapes and associations
Do you sometimes play with your children in cloud associations? When the blue sky is covered with white clouds, you can find all sorts of shapes in them: animals, vehicles, and even fairy-tale creatures.
You can play with the neurographic image you created in a similar way. Especially if it is colorful. Even in the graphic you see next to it, everyone saw something different. There was a rooster, a yawning creature lying on its back, and even chlorophyll, although not green. Great fun that develops creativity, the sense of observation and the ability to associate different information. You really never know what will appear in shapes drawn in accordance with your own subconscious.
Turn the graphics drawn by you and your children in different directions. A change of perspective, or even a certain distance, can show you new ideas for associations.
Over time, I decided to prepare a coloring page based on one of my drawings. You can see it in the entry Neurographics as a doodle coloring page. For me, it was another creative game. What will it be for you? Maybe an inspiration, maybe a cool idea to try, or maybe just a regular coloring page that you can use while relaxing. Feel free to write what you think about this idea.
