Several years ago I took a 3 day art course that was offered locally, here in Parksville on Vancouver Island. Yes, artists who have been painting for a long time do take another artist’s course just for the fun of it. The subject was “Patterning in Art” and the patterns being considered were: Mandalas, Zentangle, and West Coast Indigenous Art.
Day 1 was the Mandela. The word Mandela is Sanskrit and means Circle. Composed of pleasing symmetrical patterns and featuring many beautiful colors, the Mandela or circle is often used as a focus for meditation. The repetitive patterns within the Mandela are as varied as the artist doing the work chooses. Often you will see a central image which further enhances its use as a meditational object.
In my Horse Design Drawings I have used a portion of the Mandela to represent the Sun which radiates into a beautifully colored Sky. The Horse overlaps the Sun, creating a strong Focal Point for the work. Portions of a Mandela-like design echo through the artwork creating a rhythmical repetitive pattern reminiscent of hills and valleys. A sense of freedom develops as the horse surveys its natural habitant. I call this scene a Dreamscape.
Take a look below and you will see the first Mandela that I did in black and white on Day 1 of this very enlightening course. From that exercise came the basic compositional design element of my dreamscapes - the Mandela.
Next week I will discuss Zentangle and how it plays an important part in the Horse Design Drawings. Tune in then!
