New Years Mandala Retreat Day Process Photos to Share

On January 9th we had our annual, New Years Mandala Retreat Day, "Mandala as Visual Prayer".  We gave it that title, because, the act of drawing a mandala, or for that matter doing any artmaking with intention, is a visual active dynamic prayer.

The workshop was absolutely wonderful, with a very, lovely group of 10 engaged participants, plus myself and Patricia Waters.  We co-facilitate these mandala workshops four times a year, around the change of the seasons, and at the New Year.

The next day, however,  I got hit with a pretty virulent cold virus. It totally laid me up, and I have been in dream time ever since. 10 days later, I am on prednisone and still not too well.  I realized that I wasn't feeling good that day, because I didn't feel up to photographing the mandala's at the end.

So without further ado, here are all the photos I took that day.  Unfortunately,  my energy was very low at the end of the day, and I didn't photograph everyone's mandala drawings at the end of the workshop.  I haven't added mine here, either, I will do that as it progresses on another post, as well as Patricia's completed one for the day.

                                                             Working in the studio.

                                My good friend Vicki down from Mt. Shasta for the workshop.

                                     Patricia and Sanna Rose, looking at her mandala's progress.

                                                  Judy and her daughter Kaila.

                                        Hearts within hearts within hearts, wonderful

                                                  Allysa proudly sharing her drawing.

                                                                       Release

Patricia Waters in process mandala.

                                              Here is Sanna Rose's completed Mandala

                                               Sue Wiseman's completed Mandala.
I will be posting other completed mandala's as they are sent to me.  Enjoy viewing them.  More to come
Caterina.

Mandala Workshop- Recent Images...

I am finally posting the images from our recent Autumn Equinox Mandala Retreat Day.


We had a wonderful, small circle of women, drawing and sharing in my studio, last Sunday.  The weather really co operated, thankfully and it wasn't as hot as this weekend, with Indian Summer blazing away  here in northern Ca...otherwise the studio would have been like a sauna.

 Photos speak louder than words for the process so here are some from that day of what emerged and our process.

Here are some of the small practice mandala's that were created just in the white on black.

 The contrast of the white prismacolors on the black canson mi tientes paper is always so stunning.  It is hard to jump into color, because often these  are so perfect just as they are.

This is the mandala that I began that day.  It really expresses alot of my feeling about transitioning into autumn and the approach of winter.  Actually, fall is my most favorite time of year, but their is always a bittersweetness to it as well.

Lots of release and letting go is inherent within it.

There is something about the dark center that is so provocative

After a wonderful morning of diving in and drawing small mandalas, we began our bigger ones and then created small test color wheel mandalas, practicing blending the rainbow prismacolor pencils that we use in the process. Color is so exciting, and it changes everything.

 We use a limited palette in this process, just 6 colors plus white.  Aquamarine, true green, yellow, orange, magenta, and violet.

                                 With these 6 colors it is possible to mix hundreds of vibrant colors.

The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of countless petals.╡

>

> - Kahlil Gibran -

Here are all the mandala's in process up on the wall.  Because this is such detailed work, we need to give our eyes, hands and backs breaks.  Often times when you stand back and look at what you are doing, it is possible to see the work in new ways. The mandalas will let you know what the next step is.

Please note the intricate detail on this amazing mandala.

Close up..........

This is the mandala that I began that day, in process. I will post the completed process at a later time.

This is Patricia Waters mandala in process, created with a dear friend in mind who is going through some traumatic life changes.  

Most everyone in the group promised to send the completed mandala images to me, perhaps those will be included in another post.  

I knew that in finding the mandala as an expression of the self

 I had attained what was for me the ultimate.

 C. G. Jung