Art Therapy and Colour

Focusing on a single colour can help create a sense of calmness and wellbeing. It helps centre and focus us when we reduce number and choices of textures, colours, and shapes that usually flood our world. Sitting and letting yourself sink deeply into a single colour can wake up your senses in an interesting and inspiring way. Try this Art Therapy Exercise for exploring a single colour.

Art Therapy Exercise and Colour Meditation

Gather some watercolour paper and a set of watercolours. Start by getting comfortable, feeling grounded in your chair and noticing your feet and legs. Take a minute to notice if your feet are tired, energized or relaxed. Are they cold or warm? Take some time to relax your feet and let them make contact with the floor. First push your heels then your toes into the floor. Notice the chair under your legs and buttocks and adjust yourself to get even more comfortable in your chair. Take a deep breath into your stomach. As you pause here, staying with your stomach, notice if you sense a colour. Bring awareness to your back. What are you noticing here? Is your back tense or feeling relaxed? Now move to your chest. Can you breathe freely? Is your chest open or closed? Now move your awareness to your hands and arms. Notice if there is any tension and gently release it. Take time to sense into your hands, stretching the fingers. Do your hands feel different or similar? Bring awareness to your neck and head. Release any tension in your jaw and neck area.

Now gently turn inward, sensing into your inner throat, chest and then resting in the belly area. As you stay Present and aware of yourself sitting in the chair, give yourself a gentle invitation to focus on a colour. Take some time to notice where in your body you sense this colour the strongest, and sit with it for a few minutes. By bringing a quality of gentleness and acceptance to that part of you, you can hear from its point of view, what it has to tell you. You might write down or draw its response. Now while staying in presence, take your watercolours and paint on your paper the colour that you sense in your body. You may want to start with making circular movements on the paper or any shapes or lines that feel right. Stay body centered as you continue to move your hand on the paper. 

When you feel finished, you may want do a journaling exercise. Sit with the one colour and remember three objects that you may own or have seen that had this colour in them. Paint or write these objects. Now write or express in images the feelings that you experience with this colour. When you are ready to bring this exercise to a close, simply return to the colour that you have been meditating with and use it to create a closing circle on your paper.