Contemplative Arts
Approaching art with beginner's mind
Teacher Experience
A contemplative invitation for educators to reflect on before teaching.Try this 10-minute experiment: Choose any creative medium (drawing, movement, humming) and create something with no goal other than staying present to the process. Notice when your mind judges the outcome and gently return to the sensations of creating. How does this differ from your usual approach to making something? Consider how bringing this quality of presence—rather than outcome focus—might transform other activities in your teaching day.
Student Experience
A contemplative invitation for students to connect with this learning goal.Use your non-dominant hand to draw or paint for 10 minutes. What do you notice about your expectations and judgments when you can’t create the way you usually do?
Understanding
Students will understand...How we create art, arrange objects, move, play, and interact with the world can become a contemplative practice. Approaching creative activities with fresh perspective and openness enhances both artistic skill and awareness development.
Action
Students are able to...Cultivate beginner’s mind through contemplative art practices by approaching familiar materials with fresh curiosity, questioning assumptions about artistic ability, and practicing openness to unexpected creative discoveries; engage in sustained contemplative art projects that develop patience, concentration, and acceptance of the creative process; and examine how contemplative art practice affects their relationship with perfectionism, self-judgment, and creative confidence.
Content Knowledge
Students will know...Contemplative arts are creative practices that blend making things with paying attention to the present moment. They help people develop awareness and insight by using the creative process as a form of meditation. Unlike regular art that might focus on making something beautiful or expressing feelings, contemplative arts focus on what happens in your mind and body while you’re creating.
Beginner’s mind is an important aspect of contemplative arts practice. This means approaching creative activities with fresh curiosity and openness, even when working with familiar materials. Beginner’s mind helps us notice assumptions we might have about our artistic abilities and allows us to discover new possibilities in our creative work.
Examples of contemplative arts include ikebana (Japanese flower arranging), kyudo (Japanese archery), calligraphy, and various forms of meditative movement. These practices developed in different cultures as ways to combine artistic skill with spiritual development. Many contemporary artists also practice contemplative arts through mindful drawing, pottery, photography, or other creative activities approached with full attention and intention.
The key to contemplative arts is bringing the same quality of awareness to creative activities that people bring to sitting meditation, paying attention to the present moment, noticing when the mind wanders, and gently returning focus to the immediate experience of creating.
Guiding Questions
Implementation Possibilities
Create “beginner’s mind challenges” where students work with familiar materials in completely new ways, such as drawing with non-dominant hand or painting with unconventional tools. Establish sustained art projects that require multiple sessions to complete, allowing students to practice patience and observe how their relationship with the work evolves over time. Design reflection protocols that help students notice and release perfectionist tendencies during creative work. Practice contemplative art forms that emphasize process over product, such as creating temporary sand patterns or meditation through repetitive mark-making. Facilitate group discussions about creative assumptions and how beginner’s mind transforms artistic confidence. Implement peer observation exercises where students witness each other’s creative processes and offer supportive feedback focused on awareness rather than technical critique.
Assessment Ideas
Observe students practicing beginner’s mind approaches during art-making, noting their willingness to experiment and release expectations. Reflective essay analyzing how beginner’s mind practice has affected their creative process and relationship with artistic challenges. Students demonstrate teaching a contemplative art technique to peers using beginner’s mind principles. Design an art installation that expresses their understanding of how fresh perspective transforms creative experience.
