International Dot Day: Sunday Sept. 15th

Or You can make art too.

I was introduced to Peter H. Reynold’s book The Dot many years ago. I love the story and the encouragement that it provides to young children. Actually, I think adults who say they can’t draw should read it and try it too.

We are taught from a young age to think of things as good or bad, right or wrong, or successful or unsuccessful. We get caught in binary thinking and can quickly become discouraged if we believe that we aren’t good enough.

What if we change our way of thinking and begin to believe that there’s more than just two ways of looking at something? What if we are all works in progress and by the simple act of making a dot on a piece of paper and signing it, we become an artist?

Try it.

See how it feels to take a crayon, marker, pen, pencil, paint, or maybe a blueberry and make a mark on a piece of paper, a grocery bag, or a scrap of wood. When you are done, sign your name.

You just made art.

I know for me, each mark I make feels good. Even the mistakes, the scribbles, the pages of my sketchbook that I don’t share with anyone. They all feel like they are leading me to be my most authentic artist self. Some scribbles lead to new ideas, some test my patience, some sooth my racing mind, and they are all mine leading me forward.

You may look at one of Rembrandt’s paintings and think I can’t do that, therefore, I’m not an artist. Rembrandt didn’t start there. Vincent Van Gogh didn’t start with Starry Night. Children’s book illustrator’s like Peter H. Reynolds didn’t start making marks that became their books. They made their first mark, then their second, third, fourth, fifth and on and on. Some days they believed they got it right and other days they got lesson in what they didn’t want to accomplish. Or maybe a lesson in what to try next.

It’s with a willingness to keep trying, to play and experiment that we grow and change.

This Sunday, September 15th, is International Dot Day. A day to celebrate creativity. A day to play and try out some art making. Make a splash.

Artist Paul Klee¹ said, “A line is a dot that went for a walk.” Take your dot for a walk and see where it takes you.

If you make a mistake, see what you can do to change it and make it into something else. Check out Corinna Luyken’s The Book of Mistakes.²

Whether your dot takes you for a walk into an artistic world, reminds you that it’s fun to play, or sets you off on another creative adventure, you made a shift in your thinking just by letting go and making a mark.

1. https://www.socratic-method.com/quote-meanings-and-interpretations/paul-klee-a-line-is-a-dot-that-went-for-a-walk

2. Some links are affiliate links. I may receive a small income that doesn’t effect the cost of the purchase to you.