Mindful Animation for Learning Awareness

This co-authored chapter discusses a research project initiated at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London which investigates whether the making of drawn animation can be a mindful practice. The original intention of the project was to explore the potential application of Buddhist principles and practices such as mindfulness within a secular context to benefit art and design students who experience stress in the learning environment, thereby wishing to examine learning processes more closely. The design of the project led to the use of the repetitive, haptic procedures and collaborative processes of drawn animation in combination with short-form mindfulness meditation techniques. The project rests on the wider developments in UK Higher Education that seek to enable students to engage meaningfully with the affective and extra-rational dimensions of learning. The authors conclude that there is scope for more exploration as animation-making is about the analysis of change and awareness of momentary existence.