Ways of Walking
“Thus walking—as art—provided a simple way for me to explore relationships between time, distance, geography and measurement. These walks are recorded in my work in the most appropriate way for each different idea: a photograph, a map, or a text work. All these forms feed the imagination.” − Richard Long
Walking is a multi-sensory experience and our time spent solo walking through the landscape, whether urban or rural can be deeply connecting. The colours, textures and scents we may become aware of whilst walking can slow down the mind as well as heighten our awareness and deepen our experience to our sense of self and place. The simple act of walking, of putting one foot in front of the other can help clear and soothe a busy mind. The gentle rhythm of our body moving through a land or city scape can ground us in turbulent times.... And walking is also a wonderful way to spark our imagination and creativity too.....
If you are a walker you probably already know all the ways a good walk can help you, and if you are looking for something a little different to do during your daily walkabout why not take yourself off on one or more of these creative solo adventures and notice what new things you might discover?.....
By the way, you are absolutely welcome to go a little off-piste with these practices. In fact we encourage it! and would love for you to find your own ways of discovering new things about some of your favourite places......
What you will need:
- A journal or sketchpad
- Mark-making materials / pencils, charcoal. pastels etc
- Sit mat, if stopping along the way
- Garden string
- Scissors
- Sticks & twine found along the way
Creative Adventure #1
At Surface Level: Touch, Texture & Making Marks
Create your own visual survey along one of your walking routes ....
At Surface Level: Touch, Texture & Making Marks
Create your own visual survey along one of your walking routes ....
There are billions of micro-ecologies living at the surfaces and edges around us in every moment, even though many of these are imperceptible to the human eye this creative adventure is all about slowing down to notice what you might encounter along your walk. We often assume that a photograph is the most accurate way of capturing the small details of a place. This activity offers you the invitation to try and collect some slightly different imagery and information about your chosen area through some simple mark-making & surface rubbings. This is a practice of observation & creative documentation....
Let's go!
- When you have arrived at your chosen destination take a few moments to pause right where you are and take a few deep breaths to land within yourself and your environment.
- Standing still start to notice any textures, lines or impressions in your immediate space.
- With your investigators hat on begin to follow what interests you and hone in on the finer details, the different shapes, textures, colours....
- If you want to document a particular surface area hold a piece of paper against it and take a simple rubbing using some charcoal or pastels, you could even try experimenting with mud or grass. There is no wrong or right way of doing this, the important thing is to enjoy the process and be open to some unexpected finds.
- Another way to record your findings is to make a simple note of it through marks and shapes in your sketchbook, these two processes combined will enable you to build an interesting portrait of your chosen area.
- Spend some time afterwards to create some different compositions from your collection of surface rubbings/mark makings and see what you discover.
Some things to reflect on later.....
- Did you find it easy or difficult to slow down and notice the different surfaces around you?
- Do you feel like you got to know your chosen place in more detail?
- Of the surfaces you were interested in the most, what was it about them that drew you in?, was it the textures and colours or perhaps a curiosity of how they became to be as they are?
- Did you notice your own surfaces and impressions made along the way?, How might these have impacted on the environment around you?
- What else did you notice?
Creative Adventure #2
Three Dimensions of Listening: Mapping Your Soundscape
Hone your listening skills & create a sound map of your favourite walks .......
"Maybe if I listen closely to the rocks
Next time, I'll hear something, if not
A word, perhaps the faint beginning
of a syllable."
- Phoebe Hanson
Here we invite you to refine your listening skills and get to know your local environment on a subtler level. Creating sound maps can help you learn more about the detail of a particular place, and offer an opportunity to immerse yourself a little more deeply into your journey through the landscape. Mapping our soundscape is a practice of slowing down and walking intentionally. How all too often we find ourselves rushing from A to B that we miss so much of what we are moving through....Have a go at making your own sound map and discover something new about one of your everyday walking routes, whether you are walking through town or taking yourself off on a longer walk through the countryside.
Next time, I'll hear something, if not
A word, perhaps the faint beginning
of a syllable."
- Phoebe Hanson
Here we invite you to refine your listening skills and get to know your local environment on a subtler level. Creating sound maps can help you learn more about the detail of a particular place, and offer an opportunity to immerse yourself a little more deeply into your journey through the landscape. Mapping our soundscape is a practice of slowing down and walking intentionally. How all too often we find ourselves rushing from A to B that we miss so much of what we are moving through....Have a go at making your own sound map and discover something new about one of your everyday walking routes, whether you are walking through town or taking yourself off on a longer walk through the countryside.
Lets go!
- Find a spot outdoors, it can be anywhere you feel comfortable, from out in the garden to your local park or woodland.
- Start by standing or sitting still for a few moments and take a few deep breaths to help you arrive within yourself.
- When you are ready begin to tune into the sounds around you.
- Spend a few minutes just observing & listening, accepting the different sounds without judgement. If you find your mind begins to wander, gently bring it back to the sounds around you.
- Notice what sounds you hear in your immediate space and gradually start to expand your field of listening to build up a more three dimensional layer of sound.
- Take note of what you hear in each direction (you don't need to map each sound, just what you find yourself naturally focussing on)
- When you feel ready take out your sketch book and mark making materials and begin to 'map' the sounds you hear, you can do this sat still or whilst on the move.
- The sounds you map can be anything from simple marks, words or shapes....However you feel to translate them. Perhaps hearing a bird alarm might translate as a series of dots, a gust of wind a circular shape moving across the page....
- There is no wrong or right way to map your soundscape, so have some fun with it, be free in your recordings and spend some time at the end looking at what you've captured.
-Perhaps if you made a few you could put them all together to create one larger sound map of the area.
Some things to reflect on later.....
- Were there any particular sounds that you resonated with?
- Were some sounds more difficult to map than others?
- Was there a difference in how you mapped the man-made vs natural sounds in your maps, or how you felt about them?
- Did you find yourself using colour? if so how did the colours you chose relate to the different sounds you heard?
- Has making your sound map made you feel differently about the space you were in?
- Was it difficult to just focus on listening?
- What else did you notice?
- Find a spot outdoors, it can be anywhere you feel comfortable, from out in the garden to your local park or woodland.
- Start by standing or sitting still for a few moments and take a few deep breaths to help you arrive within yourself.
- When you are ready begin to tune into the sounds around you.
- Spend a few minutes just observing & listening, accepting the different sounds without judgement. If you find your mind begins to wander, gently bring it back to the sounds around you.
- Notice what sounds you hear in your immediate space and gradually start to expand your field of listening to build up a more three dimensional layer of sound.
- Take note of what you hear in each direction (you don't need to map each sound, just what you find yourself naturally focussing on)
- When you feel ready take out your sketch book and mark making materials and begin to 'map' the sounds you hear, you can do this sat still or whilst on the move.
- The sounds you map can be anything from simple marks, words or shapes....However you feel to translate them. Perhaps hearing a bird alarm might translate as a series of dots, a gust of wind a circular shape moving across the page....
- There is no wrong or right way to map your soundscape, so have some fun with it, be free in your recordings and spend some time at the end looking at what you've captured.
-Perhaps if you made a few you could put them all together to create one larger sound map of the area.
Some things to reflect on later.....
- Were there any particular sounds that you resonated with?
- Were some sounds more difficult to map than others?
- Was there a difference in how you mapped the man-made vs natural sounds in your maps, or how you felt about them?
- Did you find yourself using colour? if so how did the colours you chose relate to the different sounds you heard?
- Has making your sound map made you feel differently about the space you were in?
- Was it difficult to just focus on listening?
- What else did you notice?
Creative Adventure #3
Through Natures Lens: Capturing The Moment
Restore a practice of natural observation and 'Frame a View'....
Did you ever have a go at square foot nature surveying at school? Well this creative adventure is sort of inspired by that!
I love taking photos when I'm out walking and reaching for my phone to try and capture those fleeting moments has become pretty habitual and I know that in the process of trying to freeze that view in time how much I am also missing out on in those precious few moments. I would like to share a little practice that might help others like me who can sometimes be a bit too trigger happy with the camera to find a balance between looking through our screens or camera lenses and what we see through our own human eyes. Perhaps by practicing this form of natural observation we can reconnect more deeply to our innate ability to store the memory and detail of those special moments and places, and then go on to share those stories with others.....
So for the final time, Lets go!
- Locate an area you'd like to practice this activity in, maybe your back garden or a place in nature somewhere further afield.
- You can create your nature frame before you leave or make it along the way with the things you find. Either way you will need some sticks (doesn't have to be square!) and some natural string or twine to tie your frame together.
- A bit like the square foot nature surveying activity you can throw your frame into the air and see where it lands, or take a bit of time to see what imagery you would like to 'capture' and what detail you feel drawn to focus in on.
- When you are ready place your frame over the area of interest and spend a bit of time with your image, what else is going on within your frame? are ice particles melting? is the wind blowing at the corner of the leaves?....what else is happening within that tiny framed moment?
- When you are ready take your frame and move on until you see something else that catches your eye and have another go.
- You could also build up your own image from natural materials collected along your walk.
- If you like me just can't resist a bit of documentation then allow yourself the opportunity to capture some of your most favourite 'shots'
- Later on you could get creative with some further compositions of your photographed framed moments.
Some things to reflect on later.....
- Did you find yourself drawn to framing any views in particular?
- Did you notice any other life forms within your frame?
- Did you find yourself framing your view according to certain levels of light or shadow ?
- How did it feel slowing down to spend time with your framed view?
- Was it difficult to just focus on that one small area?
- What else did you notice?
We hope you enjoy and benefit from these creative adventures and by taking part in them perhaps discover something new about the places you love to be in.....
If you feel inspired to share any of your discoveries then you can do so on our Green Minds community Facebook page.
I love taking photos when I'm out walking and reaching for my phone to try and capture those fleeting moments has become pretty habitual and I know that in the process of trying to freeze that view in time how much I am also missing out on in those precious few moments. I would like to share a little practice that might help others like me who can sometimes be a bit too trigger happy with the camera to find a balance between looking through our screens or camera lenses and what we see through our own human eyes. Perhaps by practicing this form of natural observation we can reconnect more deeply to our innate ability to store the memory and detail of those special moments and places, and then go on to share those stories with others.....
So for the final time, Lets go!
- Locate an area you'd like to practice this activity in, maybe your back garden or a place in nature somewhere further afield.
- You can create your nature frame before you leave or make it along the way with the things you find. Either way you will need some sticks (doesn't have to be square!) and some natural string or twine to tie your frame together.
- A bit like the square foot nature surveying activity you can throw your frame into the air and see where it lands, or take a bit of time to see what imagery you would like to 'capture' and what detail you feel drawn to focus in on.
- When you are ready place your frame over the area of interest and spend a bit of time with your image, what else is going on within your frame? are ice particles melting? is the wind blowing at the corner of the leaves?....what else is happening within that tiny framed moment?
- When you are ready take your frame and move on until you see something else that catches your eye and have another go.
- You could also build up your own image from natural materials collected along your walk.
- If you like me just can't resist a bit of documentation then allow yourself the opportunity to capture some of your most favourite 'shots'
- Later on you could get creative with some further compositions of your photographed framed moments.
Some things to reflect on later.....
- Did you find yourself drawn to framing any views in particular?
- Did you notice any other life forms within your frame?
- Did you find yourself framing your view according to certain levels of light or shadow ?
- How did it feel slowing down to spend time with your framed view?
- Was it difficult to just focus on that one small area?
- What else did you notice?
We hope you enjoy and benefit from these creative adventures and by taking part in them perhaps discover something new about the places you love to be in.....
If you feel inspired to share any of your discoveries then you can do so on our Green Minds community Facebook page.