Recently, I began painting mandalas on old LP's again. A few years ago I did several, sold some, donated some, and put the last one I had left in an exhibit at the Tunica Riverpark & Museum. (The exhibit runs through August.)
It was a discussion about the benefits of recycling that had me dusting off the old record albums and breaking out the acrylics, crystals and dimensional paint...I even threw in a lid from an empty jar to use as the center.
I had forgotten just how much fun it is to do these. This is the first mandala in a series I'm calling: Just for the Record.
the sun always looks like a perfectly minted gold coin
polished and placed in flight by God's playful kiss.
And so many varieties of fruit hang plump and round.
I see the beautiful curve of a pregnant belly
shaped by a soul within,
and the earth itself.
I have gotten the hint:
There is something about circles the Beloved likes.
Within the circle of a Perfect One
there is an infinite community of light.
-Hafiz (1325-1389)
This is the fourth installment in my Mandala Meditation series, and was inspired by the words from one of my favorite poets, Hafiz. I enjoy creating and sharing these videos in the hope that they might provide an oasis of beauty and rest in the midst of your busy days.
The mandalas for this video were created using some of my existing artwork (alcohol inks) as source images.
Everyone needs to take a little break now and then....
The artwork in this video was created using my alcohol ink paintings as source images, with music from Hildegard of Bingen, Vision 1 - The Fire of Creation. If you are unable to view the video on my blog, you can watch it directly on YouTube at A Pause for Beauty.
During this season of Lent, I am traveling with Hildegard of Bingen and a blessed company of kindred spirits, through an online retreat led by Christine Valters Paintner at Abbey of the Arts. Creative expression is an important part of this journey, and I hope to share here some of the art that is bubbling up in me as a result. As it so happens, it feels as though many portals are opening all at once in my life right now!
Although I knew of Hildegard because of her connection with mandalas, I truly "met" her for the first time this past year during another Abbey retreat, Women on the Threshold, and came to appreciate more fully the scope of her vision and understanding. The visual meditation, Creation Two Ways, was inspired by her.
Time and Space was created using the alcohol ink painting below as a source image.
Bubbling Up (Stacy Wills, 2013)
3" x 4" alcohol inks on yupo
Here is a recording of Hildegard's beautiful antiphon: Hodie Aperuit
(As you listen, I invite you to click on Time and Space for an enlarged view.)
I am a contemplative artist, combining traditional mediums and digital technology to create unique images. I have two blogs: A Magic Mom and Her Mandalas, dedicated primarily to the art form of the mandala, and The Sacred Alter, which focuses on what I can only describe as "art birthed from the soul." I hope you will enjoy visiting both.
