This mandala is my second variation on a theme. You can see part one and read the story behind it by clicking here: ArtiphyTheHeart. Unfortunately, the scan doesn't do it justice. Some textures and subtlties have been lost, but you get the general idea.
Continuing in Joan Kellogg's stages of the Great Round of Mandala as outlined by Susanne Fincher in The Mandala Workbook: A Creative Guide for Self-Exploration, Balance, and Well-Being
These two Stage Seven Mandalas are examples of the two typical Mandalas which depict the integration and wholeness of individuation, as defined by Carl Jung. Above, the cross within a circle, and below, the square within a circle within a square.
Continuing with Kellogg's stages of the Great Round of Mandala, stage six exemplifies the conflict of two opposing forces, resolved by a transcendent third which integrates the opposites without overpowering, bridging, or compromising thier unique identities.
Observing this Mandala, as in life, appearances can be deceiving. The central heart and it's off-shooting red circles equally cover both the black and the white areas, the yin and the yang, but because of the transparency of the fluid acrylic paint, it may appear that the white has more coverage. Things that are equivalent can appear skewed to one side or another, depending on vantage the point of the observer. In the same respect, the red paint may appear dense and opaque on top of the white, when in reality, it has retained it's transparency.
Below is another, equally powerful illustration of stage six. The rising sun equally shines upon, heats, and lightens the darkness of sky and the darkness of earth, and it's radient beams, particles, and waves, transcend the opposites on either side of the horizon, integrating both without overpowering, bridging, or compromising the unique identites of earth and sky.
Stage six is encountered frequently by artists, who often must resolve conflicting and contradicting elements in artwork by integrating them through an emerging third solution. This solution integrates the conflicting parts by transcending them, without overpowering, bridging, or compromising their unique identities. Example: the challenge to unify a drawing containing two elements, while retaining the characteristics of each.
Suggested reading:
The Mandala Workbook: A Creative Guide for Self-Exploration, Balance, and Well-Being
The Mandala Book: Patterns of the Universe
Below are illustrations of my Stage Four and Stage Five Mandalas, journaled as part of Kellogg's Great Round of Mandala. These stages are outlined and explained in The Mandala Workbook, by Susanne Fincher.
Stage Four
Stage Five
In my last post, I mentioned that I began my Mandala journal as a means of documenting my progress with making Mandalas following Joan Kellogg's Archetypal Stages of the Great Round of Mandala as outlined in Susanne Fincher's book, The Mandala Workbook: A Creative Guide for Self-Exploration, Balance, and Well-Being. I have just completed stage three, and am ready to move on to stage four. But before I move on, I want to show you the Mandalas that I've made for this stage.
My journaling is important only to me, as it is both stream of consciousness as I contemplate the Mandala I have just drawn and make some free associations with it, and carefully coded with my own, unique symbols, so that only I will understand fully the connections these musings have to my personal life. It cannot be taken literally or at face value and be understood for what it really means.
In The Mandala Workbook, one of Fincher's suggestions is to draw an umbilical cord attached at the top of the circle, as an example of a stage three Mandala. The Mandala above was my first attempt. You may like it better than the example I chose for my journal, but I couldn't include it. I thought it looked too much like a string of Christmas lights for me to take it seriously.
In the Mandala I chose for my journal, I chose to make loops in the cord to represent the caring eyes that see our progress along the way and encourage us, and see our failings and sustain us, heal us, and help us keep our balance on the path of our lives.
The Mandala Workbook also contains a variety of Mandalas that represent each of the stages of Kellogg's Great Round Of Mandala. Like the Mandala I've colored above, many of the images are black and white line drawings specifically included in order to be colored.
Once again, I'd like to remind everyone that I facilitate a weekly Mandala Prompt Group at Wild Precious Studios. Please stop by and join us!
Now on to stage four...
I try to create one Mandala every day. Once in awhile it's lovely and artistic. Usually it is very simple, and often very quickly made, and sometimes lopsided.
When I started this practice, my thought was to journal about my Mandalas daily. I found a square, spiral bound book of drawing paper and made one Mandala. Then I made many, many more, but separate ones, not made in the journal. I forgot about the journal. Not really forgot, just put it off a bit. Now I want to go back to it.
Several weeks ago, I made a Mandala from an unusable CD and shared this process with a prompt group which I facilitate at Wild Precious Studios. I set it down on top of my Mandala journal and discovered that it was the perfect size, so I made it the cover of my journal by cutting a mat board frame for it, glueing that down and inserting the CD. I wanted the CD to rest inside the mat board so that the glitter would be protected.
Then I flipped open the book and looked at my first and only Mandala entry, dated January 2011. That's OK. I could criticize myself for the length of time between January and June. Or, I could welcome myself back to the process. I chose the welcome!
This page reminded me that I began the Mandala journal as a means of documenting my progress making Mandalas as I followed Joan Kellogg's Archetypal Stages of the Great Round of Mandala as outlined in Susanne Fincher's book, The Mandala Workbook: A Creative Guide for Self-Exploration, Balance, and Well-Being
So today, I began page two by making my stage two Mandala. Nothing written yet, but I wanted to share it with you now, just as it is, because it represents progress regardless of whether or not the rules have been followed. And I think that's very important. Especially since when it comes down to it, we make all the rules for ourselves anyway. Yes, I mean that. Since in the end, we decide which to keep and which to throw away, when all is said and done, we are always the ones who make our own rules.
Stage two Mandala, "Floating into the light". I'll just show you what I've made without attempting to explain or outline Susanne's workbook. But I will share that I had a great time making this very quick Mandala with colors you might find in a nursery. Soft, with round, sparkles of glitter which are also Mandalas in their own right, as are the fingerprint blips and blobs of paint.
More soon!
The pic below is re-blogged from a post by Corina Stupu Thomas, on her blog, Searching for happiness. You can read the entire post by clicking HERE.
via searchingforhappiness.typepad.com
Corina presents an informed description of Mandalas in her post, and then goes on to say...
"The truth is that anybody can create a mandala, as complex or as simple as you want it to be. Wheather you are on the beach enjoying the sunshine, or in the garden sipping a cup of tea,or on the train commuting, commuting ...... or in a boring meeting ...........take a piece of paper with you, a pen ........ and have a go .......... start your mandala today.
But what can possibly do a mandala for you?..."
...and she continues the post by listing some of the wonderful benefits that can be derived from this enjoyable and relaxing practice.
This means a lot to me especially, because in addition to making my own Mandalas, I am also the facilitator of the group, Making Mandalas: Art Within The Circle, at Wild Precious Studios, where more than 100 participants of all backgrounds and skill levels are exploring various ways to express themselves with Mandala artwork, and may post their creations to a gallery if they wish.
I hope you'll stop by Corina's blog and read her very thoughtful and informed post. And if you're interested in Making Mandalas of your own, why not join our group at Wild Precious? Just click HERE, or on the Making Mandalas badge on the sidebar. You may email me for more information, if you'd like. Hope to see you and your Mandala creations soon!
We're still Making Mandalas at Wild Precious Studios! There are now 4 weeks of prompts up to get your creative juices flowing and spark ideas for Mandala artwork, so please come and join us! Click HERE for more information about Wild Precious Studios and to join.
This week in Making Mandalas: Art Within the Circle, the prompt group I'm facilitating at Wild Precious Studios, we're working with templates, grids and geometric designs. Come and join us!
The grid of mandalas I'm currently working is below. It's in the raw stage of mapping out the lights and darks of the gradients, but already, several unexpected patterns are beginning to emerge. I'll post more of this as the patterns progress.
I found the grid HERE at the website of a very talented Mandala maker, Charles Gilchrist. Take a look at the video below on the nature of his work. Whether or not you're aligned with his spirituality, his artwork is amazing, as is the science and geometry of the patterns created.
Yesterday I posted concentric circle templates in downloadable .pdf format for anyone who would like to use them in artwork. Click HERE to access them if you'd like to have them. Today I worked with concetric circles-3 to make the mixed-media mandala below.
All images are from Crowabout, printed, cut, arranged around the circles and laid down with gloss gel medium. The entire piece was then treated to successive thin, alternating, red and yellow acrylic glazes, then further defined with pens and markers.
Mandala making is a soothing, centering way to begin and end each day. Please join me and more than 70 others at Wild Precious Studios in Making Mandalas: Art Within the Circle. This is week #2, and you can jump in any time you wish. Hope to see you there.
