🎨 This is a series of small creative experiments inspired by my coursework at UAL, exploring how art-making can support our well-being and everyday joy.
New playground series!
How can we use art for well-being?
I’ve always struggled with perfectionism and starting something new, especially art, often feels impossible. But once I finally begin, I slip into that flow state where my mind quiets and the inner noise fades. It doesn’t last forever, but those moments of art-making always feel deeply healing.
That feeling of calm made me wonder. Could art itself be a tool for well-being? That curiosity led me to a course at Central Saint Martins on Art Making for Health and Well-Being. We’re only in the second week, and already I’m learning so many fascinating insights. So through this series, I’ll be sharing small creative experiments you can try and reflections along the way.
🧠Mind Mapping as a Creative Tool
With the constant stream of content around us, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed — what’s meaningful, what’s just noise, and what’s worth remembering?
I’ve often used mind mapping to organize project ideas when my thoughts start to overflow. It’s such an intuitive way to visualize what’s in your head and make sense of chaos.
From a more scientific standpoint, mind mapping helps with:
Seeing the bigger picture
Organizing and analyzing ideas
Memorizing complex information
Creating meaningful connections
Visualizing patterns and relationships
🎨 Turning Mind Mapping into Art
This week, we explored how mind mapping can also become a mindful art-making practice, one that helps you see yourself visually.
Here are two creative exercises you can try:
💚 Hand Silhouette (20 min)
Trace both of your hands on paper.
In the left hand, fill the space with marks, colors, or lines representing your past year.
You can also think of the left side as yin — the moon, night, the passive and reflective energy symbolizing rest, intuition, and what has already taken shape.
In the right hand, fill it with what you hope for in the year ahead.
The right side can represent yang — the sun, day, active energy — symbolizing growth, intention, and forward movement.
Notice how these two energies coexist in your drawing — the balance between reflection and action, what was and what’s becoming.
💚 Head Silhouette (20 min)
Create a side profile of your head (you can trace a shadow on the wall or imagine one).
Fill it with what’s inside your mind right now; what takes up space, what gives or drains energy.
Before finishing, step back and notice if the artwork feels balanced. Add color or marks where it needs more attention.
💠What I Felt
It was surprisingly difficult to visualize my year at first, but as I started, various emotions began to surface. It felt more freeing to express through marks than through words.
When I compared the two hands, I saw such contrast: last year’s anxiety and uncertainty from my career change vs. this year’s growing sense of direction and hope.
The head silhouette helped me slow down and notice what occupies my mental space right now. I drew a small garden in the neck area (a quiet place of inner peace) alongside fading flowers that reminded me how care and attention must be continuous.
🪞 Try It Yourself
If you give it a try, don’t worry about making it pretty. Just let the marks and colors tell you what’s been living in your mind.
What surprised you? What did you feel while making it?
If this post resonated with you, the best compliment would be to share it with one person who might enjoy this or restack it for others to discover 💚