The Mindful Studio: Mindful Walking

Mindfulness is often associated with seated meditation, but it can also include movement. When mindful movement—such as mindful walking—is combined with drawing, students can gain a deeper awareness of their body and anatomy while cultivating present moment awareness.

During mindful walking, the steps taken are less about the destination and more about awareness of the movement of the feet and legs and the motion of the body. Once students have experienced mindful walking, deepening the practice through drawing can enhance the experience by combining movement with cognition and creativity. Mind-body connections that include sensory awareness offer students tools for learning using the whole body.

Art and Anatomy
Anatomy and art have a long history together. Milagros (Spanish for “miracles”) are small religious charms that depict a wide range of subjects, including body parts. These metal charms were nailed or pinned to crosses or wooden statues of saints in a petition for help or to give thanks for a received grace.

Italian Renaissance artists were known for their lifelike portrayal of the human figure. Both Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo drew detailed anatomical dissections that surpassed much of the knowledge of anatomy known at that time. Leonardo filled thousands of pages of manuscript with drawings and diagrams of human anatomy.

The need to understand and explore the beauty of the human body also extends to contemporary artists. Chilean artist Juana Gomez uses fabric and thread to explore the systems that control the human body. Her images of the circulatory, endocrine, and nervous systems reveal patterns and networks in the human body that resemble trees or river systems in nature.

Scottish artist Rebecca Harris combines textiles and technology to reveal the human body through expressive, tactile sculptures, installations, and embroideries.

The following steps will show you how to integrate mindful walking and anatomical drawing into your classroom. Students can walk in a circle around the classroom or outdoors. For inspiration, you can show examples of Leonardo’s foot drawings.

Procedures
1. Invite students to stand still and focus on their breathing.
2. Next, ask them to notice their posture and the feel of their feet in their shoes, paying attention to how the muscles of the body support and balance, and how the spine holds the body upright.
3. Students begin walking, moving very slowly and being mindful of each step.
4. Ask students to place the heel of the foot down first and roll from heel to toe, noticing each step, and to be aware of how the entire body feels as it moves forward, and if their arms move or swing as they walk. Ask them to notice which muscles support this movement.
5. Once students have connected with the sensations in their body, invite them to open their senses to the sights and sounds around them. Ask what they see, hear, and smell.
6. Tell them that if their minds wander, they should simply return their focus to their breath and the movement of their feet as they walk, or the sensations of their body.
7. After five minutes, direct students to their seats, asking them to take a few minutes to notice how they feel after walking. Ask them if they feel calmer, energized, or more focused. Do they have a greater awareness of their body and how it moves through space?
8. Invite students to draw their feet as a way to ground the experience in the present moment. They can draw their bare feet or the shoes they are wearing. The goal is to be mindful about how their feet support them every day.
9. Have students choose the view they want to draw (front, top, or side) and work intuitively. They should draw the outside shape of the foot or shoe first.
10. Once the primary shape has been drawn, students can add details. As they work, remind them to reconnect with the sensations they experienced while walking. Students can finish their drawing by adding color or exploring value and shading with pencils.

Optional: Extend this assignment by having students create anatomical sculptures of their feet out of clay or other soft-sculpture materials.