Loosely speaking, our brain have two parts, the left hemisphere takes control the right part of the body, while the other takes in charge of the left one. Because of the dominance of the left brain, most of us is right hand. From what I read lately, I was amazed by the ability of “switching” from the left mode (L-mode) to the right mode (R-mode) by feeding it illogical information.

For example:

The picture clearly has flowers, but there is a puzzle in it. A bunch of violets concealed the profiles of Napoleon, Marie Louise, and the King of Rome. When you get this information, the regime of right brain comes. It consumes everything included illogical things (which is hardly concern by the left brain). You starting to feel some profiles from the picture by using your imagination. These kinds of puzzle print is very common in art.

There might also be a link between drawing and meditation. When you are trying to meditate, you are also trying to “turn off” (or at least alleviate) the dominance of the left hemisphere. Thoughts that comming from the mind is inevitable, but you are trying not to analyze it. Of course, it is very hard and requires practice. But people who used to with mental shift (L-mode to R-mode) is studied to be more creative than who don’t.

We might start balance at first, but the fact that the left brain was so dominance means that, despite our perfect symmetry, we are conciously not. I sometimes encourage myself try to draw, meditation,… any kind of action, as long as I shut the left brain down for a while.

* If you want to see how dominance is your left hemisphere, I suggest the excersice called Vases and faces.

Materials

Drawing on the right side of the brain Chapter 3, 4

The unexpected math behind Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” - Natalya St. Clair