Sketchbooking for Mental Health

Over the past few days, I’ve been going live on TikTok, sharing my process of creating slow, memory-based illustrations in real time. These sessions — five so far — have become little rituals of drawing, reflecting, and piecing together personal memories into sketchbook pages.

Each artwork has been built from scratch using fragments of real life: old cinema and train tickets, handwritten notes, and leaflets from cultural places and festivals that left an imprint on me. The process resembles how sketchbooks are developed for fine art university entries — thoughtful, layered, personal.

In total, around 300 people dropped in across the sessions. Some stayed for a few moments, some longer — and to each of you, thank you. Your presence made the space feel gently shared. 🌿

This project has been very therapeutic for me, and I think in the future I’d love to explore doing it in real spaces, with groups, like a collective memory-sketching practice. For now, I’m sharing a few of the illustrations that came out of those sessions — the rest will be available online soon, once I manage to edit the recordings.

Thank you again to everyone who joined — and if you feel drawn to memory-based art, quiet processes, or sketchbooking as reflection, feel free to follow my TikTok @aga_loft

#SlowArt #SketchbookPractice #Illustration #TikTokLive #MemoryArt #CreativeProcess #ArtAsTherapy #SketchbookingWithAgnes #VisualJournaling #StudioDiary #ContemporaryIllustration #FineArtSketchbook #AgnesPrygiel

Kilcreggan Calling Me Back!

In my recent Walks for Mental Health project, I randomly found myself in Kilcreggan yesterday — only to realise I’d been there before, during my first motorbike trip to Scotland back in 2022. It’s a small town on the coast of Argyle and Bute.

3 years ago, I arrived in Kilcreggan overland from Loch Lomond on a Sunday — no ferries running — and parked on a slightly sloped drive outside a café. I remember a man telling me to watch my bike or it might roll down, in that way people sometimes do when they assume a woman can’t park a motorbike properly. (Cheers, mate.)

Yesterday, I came by ferry from Gourock and didn’t recognise the place at first — not until I saw that same café and the drive. It was almost majestic, how the place gently called me back.

The 901 bus ride from Largs to Gourock was stunning too — a proper coastal journey.

These walks aren’t really about fixing any particular issue. They’re about exploring, navigating a big life and career shift after leaving London for Scotland. And most of all, letting nature steady me.

I attach a timetable for the ferry from Gourock to Kilcreggan for those who may want to take the trip as well! Bear in mind, it’s only a small ferry that can oniy accommodate passengers on foot and cyclists! 

#WalksForMentalHealth #Kilcreggan #ScottishCoast #NatureHeals #WestScotland #FerryAdventures #NorthAyrshire #QuietPlaces #SlowTravel #MentalHealthAwareness #CreativeRecovery 

A Quiet Hour in Kilwinning

In my recent Walks for Mental Health, I wandered into Kilwinning today. I’ve gone past it many times on the train or bus, but this was the first time I stopped to visit.

What I found was a small but elevated town, with a pleasant high street and the remains of Kilwinning Abbey — peaceful and grand.

There are thoughtful touches of art in the public space: commissioned mosaics, and a hidden mural next to Kilty’s Lounge. I also loved the historic architecture of Mother Lodge, dating back to the 12th century. It is said that it started as a place for skilled stone workers who built the Kilwinning Abbey to train and stay at. In warm months you can also climb the abbey’s clock tower, see the original bell and take in amazing views of the town.

Lately, I’ve been exploring North Ayrshire during my Walks for Mental Health. They are not really about fixing any particular mental health issue, but looking after myself, discovering the area of Scotland I moved to from London, and allowing small places to speak softly for themselves.

#Kilwinning #WalksForMentalHealth #NorthAyrshire #AbbeyRuins #ScottishTowns #PublicArt #HiddenScotland #MindfulWalking #kilwinningabbey