Coloring Animal Mandelas

I have a review copy of this paperback  and I'm just getting into it. " Mandala" comes from the Sanskrit word for "circle". I've played around with creating some, off and on,  but I'm not that good at detailed designs. Wendy Piersall, the illustrator of this collection, has been drawing mandala colouring pages since 2009. For this collection, she has taken her inspiration from the animal kingdom and spun them into intricate designs. Mandalas have been used for meditation and healing for thousands of years. The idea here is that colouring these designs - and thereby turning them into works of art- will bring relaxation, more focus, a higher state of meditation and simple enjoyment.  I've shared mine around a bit and I'll report further on reactions to colouring these designs. I'm impressed with both the detail and the individuality.  They are obviously created by hand as there are often subtle differences. There is a you-tube video of Wendy colouring at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GjK1FOe6Ag  which is fun to watch but since it is time-lapse photography, you don't get the relaxing effect- for that, you have to do it yourself.

Grand Prix show still on-

It was raining on our outdoor painting day, Tuesday, so we headed inside the Seine Net Loft and painted inside. The front part of this building has a museum display and the back part continues the display of paintings from the Grand Prix last Saturday. I had decided to not work in acrylics as I was also going to spend some time going through the receipt books, getting ready for writing the cheques for the artists. So, I picked this artful arrangement of a net with its floats and worked in pen and ink . Then I added colour with water-soluble wax crayons - Cretacolor- and then used water for  a simple little sketch.  I may do some other outdoor work with these materials - and I think I'll do some Life Drawing this way for a change of pace for awhile. Some of the others were much more ambitious and painted the scene out the window. I settled for a few photos and I may try a larger studio painting later, of that scene. In spite of the rainy day, a lot of people came through to see the paintings. With more artists painting this year, we were fortunate that this venue was finished and we are able to use it. There has been a lot of good response to the show - and to the Grand Prix event in general. Wow! this was the fifth year!

September with the railway matreshkas

     Now it is September, I'll put a matreshka set in the kitchen window. This month it will be "Casey and Crew" - my railway set. I had fun with this original design. The engineer is the most important person so he is the outside doll. Because he is outside, I could have projections - so his cap is an "add-on". He has an oil can  and a screw driver. His assistant has a coal skuttle while the conductor, who feels important in his uniform, has his ticket punch all ready.  His pocket watch is shown too. The porter carries a suitcase while the chef is in his whites planning the meals for the dining car. I'm planning a more modern "travel" set with the crew of an airliner and I'm currently collecting references for the clothing and insignia. Should be fun!
     The Richmond Artists Guild has a show of local scenes showing as of Monday the 8th in Rocanini Coffee Shop at the corner of Moncton and #1 Road. It will run to the end of October- stop in and have a look! I have one piece in the show-" Finn Slough- Western Entrance " - a thin painting to fit a narrow spot. There are paintings of all sizes and all are very reasonable so you have a chance to have a piece of local scenery on your wall.