This is the cover of the toolkit. In the upper left corner of the image are two layers of colored oil pastels, with a black oil pastel placed horizontally on top. Bottom right is the result of this toolkit using oil pastels. This is a colorful firework bursting on a black background, with stars and various short lines surrounding it.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Summary

This toolkit will guide learners to use the properties of oil pastels to relieve low-level anxiety through the artistic methods of drawing, covering and scratching. Turn anxiety into images and rewrite them. Allow learners to relax and calm down, and be able to look at problems more rationally.

Introduction📖

In today’s fast-paced life, people are more or less under pressure from many aspects, which leads to the generation of low-level anxiety. This toolkit will help you relieve low-level anxiety in the moment through an artistic healing method. Rediscover your inner peace by engaging in the practice of art.

Do you ever feel anxious because of small things?

Do you find yourself bothered by this kind of low-level anxiety?

This toolkit will help you calm down, reduce your anxiety, and re-examine the issues that make you anxious in 20 minutes through art practice.

⚠️Note: This toolkit is only for low-level anxiety and cannot be used for disease treatment.

Materials required🎨

a gel pen
a blank piece of paper (quarter of A4 size)
some colored oil pastels
a black oil pastel
a floss pick (or toothpick)

There are four pictures here, including an open box of oil pastels, three pieces of white paper, a gel pen and a floss pick.

Let’s get started!💡

Step 1 (2 minutes)

Take a deep breath…
Inhale deeply through your nose and count silently for 4 seconds.
Hold your breath and count silently for 7 seconds.
Exhale slowly through your mouth and count silently for 8 seconds.

You can repeat the above breathing method 3 to 5 times to calm yourself down and relax.

Now you can think about what makes you anxious.

Step 2 (2 minutes)

Write down the reason why you feel anxious on a blank piece of paper.
It can be a word or a sentence. You can write anywhere on the paper.

It's a blank piece of paper with the words write down the things that make you feel anxious. A gel pen is placed on the right side of the paper.

Step 3 (5 minutes)

Choose a few colors from colored oil pastels that you think can represent this emotion (no less than 2 colors), and try to transform the thing that makes you anxious into an image in your mind.
Paint them on the text you just wrote, create freely, it can be in any shape, don’t worry about the composition, but it should cover the entire paper.

This is a piece of paper covered with various colors, and the colored oil pastel blocks cover the words below.To the left of the paper is a box of colored oil pastels.

Step 4 (3 minutes)

Use a black oil pastel to paint the entire paper, lightly covering all the marks you just made.
During this process you can release as much as you want and feel the precipitation of this emotion.

💡Note: This step may stain the table. You can choose to place a tablecloth or larger paper under the work, but this is not necessary.

This is a piece of paper covered with black oil pastels, with a hint of color in the black.

Step 5 (5 minutes)

Use a floss pick to scratch out the desired lines or pattern on the piece.
At the same time, observe the resurfacing of the underlying colors and experience a variety of colors and images full of surprises.

The paper covered with black oil pastels was scratched with fireworks, stars, and various short lines by toothpicks. On top of the paper is a box of colored oil pastels.

Step 6 (3 minutes)

Observe the final work and think about how the whole process makes you feel.

Reflective Questions💭

During the creative process just now, was there a moment when you felt even a little more relaxed?
Do you think the colors, shapes, or lines you used in your work were expressing something?
Did this creation help you realize that you might be stronger than you thought?
Have you found a new perspective on the thing that was making you feel anxious?

Finally, you can choose to keep the final artwork, and you can share it with your peers if you wish.

Covering and Revealing of Color: Finding Calmness in Art Practice / Open Toolkits by s2794635 is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Posted by s2794635

15 November 2025

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Covering and Revealing of Color: Finding Calmness in Art Practice

Summary

Introduction📖

This toolkit will help you calm down, reduce your anxiety, and re-examine the issues that make you anxious in 20 minutes through art practice.

Materials required🎨

a gel pen

a blank piece of paper (quarter of A4 size)

some colored oil pastels

a black oil pastel

a floss pick (or toothpick)

Let’s get started!💡

Step 1 (2 minutes)

Take a deep breath…

Inhale deeply through your nose and count silently for 4 seconds.

Hold your breath and count silently for 7 seconds.

Exhale slowly through your mouth and count silently for 8 seconds.

You can repeat the above breathing method 3 to 5 times to calm yourself down and relax.

Now you can think about what makes you anxious.

Step 2 (2 minutes)

Write down the reason why you feel anxious on a blank piece of paper.

It can be a word or a sentence. You can write anywhere on the paper.

Step 3 (5 minutes)

Choose a few colors from colored oil pastels that you think can represent this emotion (no less than 2 colors), and try to transform the thing that makes you anxious into an image in your mind.

Paint them on the text you just wrote, create freely, it can be in any shape, don’t worry about the composition, but it should cover the entire paper.

Step 4 (3 minutes)

Use a black oil pastel to paint the entire paper, lightly covering all the marks you just made.

During this process you can release as much as you want and feel the precipitation of this emotion.

💡Note: This step may stain the table. You can choose to place a tablecloth or larger paper under the work, but this is not necessary.

Step 5 (5 minutes)

Use a floss pick to scratch out the desired lines or pattern on the piece.

At the same time, observe the resurfacing of the underlying colors and experience a variety of colors and images full of surprises.

Step 6 (3 minutes)

Observe the final work and think about how the whole process makes you feel.

Reflective Questions💭

During the creative process just now, was there a moment when you felt even a little more relaxed?

Do you think the colors, shapes, or lines you used in your work were expressing something?

Did this creation help you realize that you might be stronger than you thought?

Have you found a new perspective on the thing that was making you feel anxious?

Finally, you can choose to keep the final artwork, and you can share it with your peers if you wish.

Covering and Revealing of Color: Finding Calmness in Art Practice © 2025 by Ruohan Hao is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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