Mandala Art

Trumpet Player Mandala

2012-01-27T03:52:00.000-08:00

A trumpet player music mandala, created from this photo.

Bowl's Mandala

2012-01-15T12:33:00.000-08:00

I was playing around with my night light holders and bowls. Took a photo and then created these mandalas :-)

Collage Mandalas

2012-01-06T04:52:00.000-08:00

Two Collages painted with acrylics and collaged bits, sometime last year. They are created on paper.

Three mandala paintings

2010-09-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

I started with three quick drawings from nature and ended with these three mandala's ...

Mandala Collage

2010-08-14T07:13:00.001-07:00

Did this a while back, just playing around with watercolour, Twinkling H20´s, acrylic, pen and punches flowers and leaves. The magenta colouring has not come out very well in this photo unfortunately.

Life Mandalas

2010-03-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

Handmade mandalas done in acrylics, inks, watercolour and the top mandala has pearlescent acrylics too. It has been difficult reproducing all the detail and the correct colouring in these mandalas, especially the green tones have been changed in the original scanning and photo unfortunately. Please click onto the pictures to see them bigger :-) They don't exactly match the blogtop picture do they :-(

Journey Mandala

2010-03-02T12:35:00.001-08:00

“The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.” Don Williams Jr
“Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.” Greg Anderson
“To get through the hardest journey we need take only one step at a time, but we must keep on stepping” Chinese Proverb
"The journey is the reward." Chinese Proverb
"The feeling remains that God is on the journey, too. " Teresa of Avila
"The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step" Lao Tzu
"There is great meaning in life for those who are willing to journey" Jim England

Star Mandala

2010-02-18T13:04:00.000-08:00

Back to digital art but I have some handmade mandalas finished and will get them up soon. I called this one star mandala because the energy in the middle reminded me of this :-)

Watercolour Mandala

2010-01-09T16:08:00.000-08:00

Hand painted mandala on paper using watercolour and inks. Created sometime in 2009.
Please click on the picture to see it bigger :-)

Out with the old and in with th new!

2009-12-28T02:09:00.001-08:00

Time is in for a change, a new year is ahead of us soon. I felt like using this opportunity to change the top picture of this blog, so say goodbye to the old one above. Happy New Year to you all :-)

Life Mandala

2009-12-26T13:30:00.000-08:00

A collage using watercolour, lace paper, stencilling from punched paper (the same I used on the previous mandala), pearl paint and ink. This mandala reminds me of a sunny summer day :-)

Golden expressions mandala

2009-12-20T04:14:00.000-08:00

Another handmade mandala. This is a collage using gold leaf, gold paint, watercolour, a swaroski stud, tulle net, and lace paper, plus punched paper (using a punch from Papermania). Created in May this year.

Butterflies leaf Mandala

2009-12-13T15:39:00.000-08:00

This is much better in real life, it is a collage using watercolours, stamps, embossing, coloured pencils, acrylic and inks, done many months ago and blogged at 'What have I been up to?', on my other blog Art of Ann Christine Dennison. I have started handmaking mandalas again after a long time. I unfortunately cannot tell you the makers of the firm who made the stamps as I borrowed them.

Unfoldment Mandala

2009-12-01T14:48:00.001-08:00

I am at a time of unfoldment and new possibilities in my life. This last year has been difficult, doors have closed and always when this happens new doors open :-)

Flowery Lace Mandala

2009-11-12T08:55:00.001-08:00

Celebrating textures and colours, delving into vibrant purples and reds. I have been creating this over the last few days, it has been such a joy to experiment with :-)

A Mandala for Phyllis Kay.

2009-08-29T15:46:00.000-07:00

I created this mandala for the very ill Mother of a blog friend who I have grown close to at 'A Millions Mandala's for peace'. I know the wrench of having the closest person in your life swept up by illness and the effect it has. My Mother died on the 8th July 85 years old, this loss has affected me deeply, the last 10 month of her life going into decline and eventually ending with a major stroke. I pray that Melody's Mum gets a fighting chance to beat her illness.

Cross Mandala

2009-06-30T14:41:00.001-07:00

The purity of green nature all wrapped up in a cross mandala :-)

Summer Mandala

2009-06-28T16:08:00.000-07:00

I wish you all a good summer :-)
This mandala is created from this close up of flowers from my garden.

Healing Tree Mandala

2009-05-27T15:50:00.000-07:00

I created this from one of my art creations that I call 'Healing Tree'. You can find the origina.l artwork on this posting ... http://acdenn.blogspot.com/2009/05/more-painted-cards.html

Energy Mandala

2009-05-18T14:54:00.001-07:00

Lightening Mandala

2009-05-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

It was lightening while I created this mandala, it seemed like an appropriate name for it :-)
Created from two photographs, it has over 20 layers in Photoshop.

Japense 'Kodomo No Hi' Day

2009-05-05T03:54:00.000-07:00

Oneness spiraling Mandala

Childrens Joy Mandala

Kodomo No Hi Day celebrates the joy and happiness of children. These have been submitte to 'Million Mandalas for Peace'‏, as part of a group effort for peace.

I have worked with young children for many years in kindergartens and have always found them to be joyous and full of beautiful unspoiled innocent energy. They are the epitome of spontaneity, honesty, and are truly open. It is a wonderful idea, celebrating their happiness and personalities. We should be adopting this day all over the world! Our children are very precious.

Enchantment Mandala

2009-04-19T10:21:00.000-07:00

Wherever you are on this earth please remember your power.
Your voice and your actions can change the world.
You matter!
Together we can transform this world.
In choosing love and service your life becomes beautiful.
Be enchanted into a life of wonder and wisdom :-)

Flower Power Mandala

2009-04-14T16:05:00.001-07:00

The title says it all :-)

Bird Mandala Totem

2009-04-14T15:33:00.000-07:00

Love and Peace Mandala 3

2009-03-16T07:13:00.000-07:00

The transforming magic of love and peace :-)

Love and Peace Mandala 2

2009-03-13T16:19:00.000-07:00

Celebrate those you love, tell them how you appreciate them :-)

Love and Peace Mandala

2009-03-11T15:03:00.000-07:00

This is one of a series of three mandala's I have created celebrating the love and peace we have on our beautiful earth. The News feeds us with fear so we remain blind to the fantastic wonders that are happening on our planet. People all over illustrate their regard and love for each other with their words and actions each and every day. Let us concentrate on this and celebrate all the goodness that exists that lightens up our lives.

Making a little difference in a persons life can spread out and affect many more lives :-) Love is infectious! Even a humble smile to a stranger can change their world.

Circles for Peace Mandala

2009-03-04T15:12:00.000-08:00

Created for A Million Mandalas for Peace project.
I Love Peaceful Ways of Creating Peace, it is the Wise Way! Therefore such initiatives like the Mandalas for Peace Project are important in this world and I appreciate being part of it. Peace starts at home in our hearts and is definitely not always an easy task. It is feels far easier to theoretically think or discuss it than practice it in everyday living. I really get aware of this when my ego demands the righteousness of anger when I feel trodden upon and refuses to budge until it subsides. When common sense takes over again, I realise that I have waged war on myself. It seems that what happens in nations, happens to us all individually in our lives, we see our personal mirrors reflected outside and this is painful. I have no answer as to how to achieve peace, I am still working on trying to achieve it inside of myself. Using force does not feel right, we need to help each other towards peace. Help comes in many ways and forms. I feel that anything that contributes to a sense of community gives an opportunity to grow towards our goal. We are one world, the differences are merely divine flavours that enhance this beautiful mandala we live in.

Angels Mandala

2009-02-11T02:50:00.000-08:00

May the angels be with you each and every moment that you need them :-)

Many Roads to Happiness Mandala

2009-02-03T12:21:00.000-08:00

All roads go to Rome they say, think about the possibility of all roads leading to happiness :-)
Now wouldn't that be wonderful. The wise ones tell us that this is the truth!

Spiral Mandala

2009-01-13T13:15:00.000-08:00

This is a further development from the last post's mandala ...Doily Mandala.

Doily Mandala

2009-01-02T14:17:00.000-08:00

This adventure called life calls upon many paths, a slight turn and a different reality is created. Small decisions can lead to huge changes that are not always predictable. Isn't that exiting :-)
Happy New Year to you all :-)

Creation of Space Mandala

2008-12-21T16:03:00.000-08:00

Space the final frontier :-)
These are the voyages of .......
Let your fantasy fly!

Butterfly Transformation Mandala

2008-12-07T14:02:00.000-08:00

Be inspired, create transformation around you :-)

Majestic Tree Mandala

2008-11-25T12:51:00.000-08:00

A mandala celebrating the majesty of trees!

Strong and powerful they are. Some are fine and delicate too.

Think of a world without them and consider their contribution.
No natural green shade from the sun, none of their purity while rejoicing the freshness of spring, or their bountiful gifts of flowers and fruits in the summer and early autumn. No artistic autumn tree colour to please the eye. None of the splendour of barren trees that glisten with frost. With their dormant silhouettes they illustrate the magnificence of their naked essence. The seasons are truly celebrated by these beings. They breathe like us providing life giving oxygen, nourishing all life forms. They are home to many creatures too.

Lets look after our trees they are precious!

What a glorious life form!

Kaleidoscope Mandala

2008-11-18T14:52:00.000-08:00

Colours galore!!!
Swim in them and enjoy the experience, it is magical isn't it?!
I have used one of my paintings and repeated a part of it in this mandala, building up around this. Made two versions and decided to post them both. I like the top one best.

Scribble Mandala :-)

2008-11-09T04:59:00.000-08:00

This one turned out different than the other digital mandalas I have created. I used one of my drawings to create it and one of my circle brushes created in Photoshop. It is rather like some form of strange life isn't it?

Intuitive Mandala

2008-09-23T11:06:00.000-07:00

I was planning on doing this by another method but the computer refused to open some of my files. Obviously I had to create this instead, therefore I call this intuitive mandala. Instead of getting irritated by my uncooperative computer I decided to allow this creation to flow :-)

Soaring Mandala

2008-09-20T15:19:00.000-07:00

I seem to be drawing a lot of birds at the moment, Iwhile observing them I find myself fascinated with the way they seam to glide and soar in the air. Must to wonderful to be one step closer to heaven :-)

Goodbye to the old top

2008-09-20T15:02:00.000-07:00

.... and hello to the new :-)

Heart Twirl Mandala

2008-08-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

Twirling and whirling in love :-)
Pen drawing.

Blue Star Mandala

2008-08-13T15:33:00.001-07:00

Mandala created in photoshop in layers.

The word mandala was originally Sanskrit, the ancient language of India, which is said to be the original language of the world and the foundation for all following languages. It simply means a circle. A beautiful word for a simple form that has such a magical effect. Paul Heussenstamm has written on his wonderful website ...
" A mandala can guide one toward self-realization and introspective self-therapy beyond any other art form. It becomes a self-teacher, offering messages and enlightenment. Creating a
mandala allows artists to get in touch with their own mysteries, their own deep beliefs. The art comes from the personal and realizes the transpersonal, a tremendously powerful exercise."
It feels so natural for me to work within the space of the humble and never ending circle.
Why not jump in and give it a try and see what happens if you are new to them :-)

Angel light mandala revised

2008-07-28T12:59:00.000-07:00

I felt like working further on this mandala so I created this colourful and more complicated version of it. I like both the original and this version, they are very different from each other :-)

Angel light mandala

2008-06-14T14:33:00.001-07:00

I have been reminded today of these important things....

Look and concentrate on the good in things in life.
Don't give your power away by focusing on disharmony.
Only focus on your inner desires, what you want to happen in your life, especially that which is for the highest good of all.

So what kind of life do you wish for?

Flower Star Mandala

2008-06-12T11:29:00.000-07:00

Flower Mandala

2008-05-15T13:42:00.000-07:00

One of my older works. Acrylic on paper, I have used a palette knife as well as a brush on this painting.

Bird mandala

2008-05-07T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is a mandala that I created using one of my Artist Trading Cards. This ATC is made of different mediums and I love the result of the mandala with all the different textures and colours.

Nature Mandala

2008-05-03T02:33:00.000-07:00

This is one of my very first mandalas.
It is A2 in size and I have used coloured pencils.
I think it was made around 15 years ago.

Bulb mandala.

2008-04-27T04:06:00.000-07:00

This mandala is rather like a bulb ready to spring out.
This is one of my older works, I think I probably did this around 12 years ago.
I have used gouache and coloured pencils.

Sort of kind of Mandala's ;-)

2008-04-22T12:25:00.000-07:00

More pen drawing.
For me mandalas are a beautiful tool for personal and spiritual development. They quieten the mind and it is as if there is created a sacred space in which it is possible to relax the mind's chatter for a while. The circle is eternal, has no beginning and no end. The outer circle feels like the parameters of my own personal inner (& ever expanding) universe and it is safe and protected. I love delving into this space.

Mandala energies

2008-04-07T14:25:00.000-07:00

This is a watercolour painting on paper.
Looks better in 'real life'.
Please click on the picture to see it bigger :-)

Saint mandala :-)

2008-04-04T13:38:00.001-07:00

Somewhere inside of all of us there is a saint.

2008-04-02T14:42:00.000-07:00

I found a really good site about Mandala's and sacred geometry, there are two free jpg. pictures that are excellent to use for creating mandala's at this link - Charles Gilchrist. On this picture
I experimented very quickly with a printed copy and coloured pencils. You can see the grid I used behind on this picture. I don't think I will be using this so much as I prefer to use a compass and my fantasy :-)

Flower Cross Mandala

2008-03-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

Easter Monday.
Rejoice :-)

Simple Mandala repeated :-)

2008-03-19T14:59:00.000-07:00

Remember this Simple Mandala drawing?
I worked on it in Photoshop and created this ....

Worlds within the world

2008-03-13T15:43:00.000-07:00

I created this picture in Photoshop mostly from my own artwork and my computer circles. I have had this picture up on my other blog Art of Ann Christine Dennison and have used it on the top picture of both my blogs.

Spring Mandala

2008-03-08T14:18:00.000-08:00

Hand painted with pen, watercolour, gouache, gold and copper paint, Schmincke Acryl Golden Flakes-Gel and Twinkling H20's on cotton paper, with Swarovski crystal Rhinestones. I wish I could show this picture in real life, this photo does not do it justice!

A very busy mandala :-)

2008-03-02T03:33:00.001-08:00

Twirling and whirling, busy as a bee!
Flower happenings, aspiring for continuation.
Life bustling for expression.
Love in practice, creating itself!

Goddess Mandala

2008-02-24T06:50:00.001-08:00

According to the Greek mathematician and philosopher Pythagoras, five was the number of man, because of the fivefold division of the body, and the ancient Greek division of the soul. According to Pythagoras, the five points of the pentagram each represent one of the five elements that make up man: fire, water, air, earth, and psyche. (energy, fluid, breath, matter, and mind; liquid, gas, solid, plasma and aethyr) The Pythagoreans held the pentacle sacred to Hygeia, the Goddess of healing, whose name (HGIEiA) was an anagram in Greek for the elements water, earth, spirit, fire, and air.''

From the website .... http://altreligion.about.com/library/weekly/aa100102a.htm
This is only part of a long article about the five pointed star.

The pentagon is also the sign of Venus, the feminine goddess principle.

Flow of life mandala

2008-02-23T05:47:00.000-08:00

The flow of life is perfect.
Help me to deeply understand this.
To simply surrender,
And allow bliss to enter.
Amen

Mandala of growth

2008-02-17T13:13:00.001-08:00

Acrylic on paper.
One of my oldies, done many years ago.

The creation of a mandala

2008-02-15T11:07:00.001-08:00

I started out with the photo of bluebell woods that I took last spring in England. It was such a joy coming across this woodland, I remember walking through a local woodland as a child picking them. Alas this woodland was destroyed by a motorway and today the bluebells are so few it is absolutely forbidden to pick them. It is sad that we have destroyed our earth so much. Therefore I dedicate this mandala to the healing of bluebell forests and woodlands!

I worked on segmenting a small part of this in photoshop which has the shape of apiece of cake and repeating the pattern until a circle was formed. You can find the instructions here .... http://www.earthmandalas.com/how/index.html

After this I put one of my drawings into http://krazydad.com/kaleido/ and worked upon this in Photoshop and added it to the bluebell mandala. Here I worked upon repeating layers, transforming some of the layers to other sizes, adding shading, light etc.

If you are interested in seeing more mandala's that are created from nature photos then I would recommend you visit Sue O'Kieffe's blog. She has some beautiful mandala's up.

Mandala of growth

2008-02-12T14:19:00.000-08:00

I started this painting over a year ago. You can see an earlier version of it here further down the page, if you are curious. It is a difficult picture to photograph, it looks better in real life!

I have used a variety of mediums on this painting .... Gouache, Pen, Shimmering H20's, Coloured Pencils, Copper Paint, Glitter Paint and Swarovski Studs.

I love tree's

2008-02-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

A homage to tree's of all kinds!

Wonder Mandala

2008-02-02T11:27:00.000-08:00

A few words - a little reminder to myself :-)

Tender wonderment.
Gently soar through me.
Change my perceptions.
Allow creation and new possibilities.
Each moment is born again.
There is always an opportunity for renewal!

Simple Mandala

2008-02-01T12:14:00.000-08:00

Simplicity sometimes says more than complexity.
The view is serene, the message is clear :-)

A quickie!

2008-01-30T13:37:00.001-08:00

....and a great link to try too
http://krazydad.com/makeyourown/
Make your own kaleidoscope.
I have used two of these and another picture to create this in Photoshop.
Get cracking, the possibilities are never ending.

The original picture I used was one of my home-made cards found here....
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/156/353192309_eb2896c7e2.jpg

Couldn't decide which was best!

2008-01-27T14:33:00.000-08:00

So I uploaded them both!
Which do you prefer?

I call these Divine Energy Mandala's, hope you like them :-)

Using my art.

2008-01-24T13:05:00.000-08:00

I often use my art in my digital creations. Here you can see I have used this drawing in the 'Piece of Cake' Mandala and this new one that I simply call 'Flower & Leaves'.

Here is a little poem I wrote over 20 years ago.....

"The flower is humble in it's beauty,
Giving without selfish concern,
I can learn from it's simple message."

Circle of flowers.

2008-01-21T11:39:00.000-08:00

You dance in a circle of flowers, enjoying the experiences of the spiral of life.
I honour you spirit, teach me to perceive you and appreciate all your creations.

A piece of cake.

2008-01-20T15:02:00.001-08:00

A piece of the cake is there for us all.
There is no such thing as lack in the universe.
Many unfortunately experience this.
I too still live in this way.
Have a lot to learn!

Flowers in rapture.

2008-01-20T12:07:00.000-08:00

Dancing and twirling.
Meetings in bliss.

Tree of Life Mandala

2008-01-19T16:07:00.001-08:00

A prayer ....

Here we are living in our coloured world. Coloured with many views, many happenings, many creations, please remind me that they are all divine when I forget! May our world mandala become at peace with itself, may each and every being understand how important they are for the harmony of the whole.
Amen :-)

Drawing from within.

2008-01-19T14:17:00.001-08:00

The simplicity of a pen that dances it's own tune on paper is exquisite. There is only the form, the light and darkness to consider. This medium is one of my favourites when creating mandala's. I love curves and petals.

Mandala's healing qualities fascinate me and I truly hope my mandala's are an inspiration for others, just as I get great happiness from seeing other artists work. I have added some links of Mandala Artists I like and will be frequently adding more for you to enjoy .... please look at the 'Loving other's work' link.

Circles of life.

2008-01-19T12:14:00.000-08:00

Mandalas are very special and much loved by me and many others. I am amazed at the power of these humble pictures and the effect they have while creating them.

I work in many mediums such a gouache, coloured pencils, watercolour, acrylics, digital manipulation in Photoshop, textile art etc. For me the expression of myself in art is a spiritual practice.

Over the years I have created mandala's and gone into the magic of these sacred circles.