Remembering Ukraine, Nature, Chi, Serenity & Flowers

February 7th, 2023

Remembering Ukraine, Nature, Chi, Serenity & Flowers

The cold dark night of our last mandala circle was filled with warmth and creativity. Remembering and diverse creativity emerged. The sense of play and deep connection with inner creativity always fills our hearts and the space. We mainly play and explore with watercolors along with acrylic ink, acrylic pens, ink pens, oil pastels and more.

Honoring Ukraine

Christine created a watercolor mandala honoring and remembering the people and land of Ukraine. The beautiful sunflowers of Ukraine are a symbol of hope. The blue sky holds peace. The jagged black line on the outside, a symbol of frustration. It will be a year on Feb 22^nd when the Putin intensely escalated the war with Ukraine, which has been going on since 2014. The horror of the attacks, devastation and killings continues.

Transition to Serenity

Ann’s serene green and blue mandala is a perfect way to process what so many of us feel and desire, “Let my fears give way to quiet rest”. Saint Teresa of Avila said this prayer in the 1500s. It is timeless.

Calming Colors and Shapes

Ann’s simple shapes of green and blue always calm the soul. They are like serene pools our hearts just want to dive into, surround ourselves with and become one with peace.

A Holder for Intentions & Gratitude

Linda M. was inspired by a quote in the book The Spirit of the Brush explaining the 3 kinds of chi. Linda’s painting reflects this by creating the inside of a three-part folder to hold intentions and gratitude. The center is a birthing shape showing her unique being, the left shows nature’s chi energy and the right nature’s chi expressed through the artist. This painting will be the inside of the folder. The other side (not yet painted) will complete this special folder.

Leaf Loving

Christine’s mandala wreath of collected and pressed leaves honors the beauty and power of leaves. Most of life on earth depends on the ability of leaves to eat sunlight along with carbon dioxide and water. Love of leaves inspired this mandala. They were traced and then celebrated with colors and marks.

Wishing For Spring – Fantasy Flowers

Wishing for spring flowers fills my days. Fantasy flowers in mandala and other shapes bring some relief for the months with no flowers blooming in my garden. Immersing myself in watercolor and the ways to play with it is soothing. These painting are also preparation for my “Fantasy Flower and Mandalas” ten-hour workshop July 22nd. It’s so much fun exploring the joys and frustrations of watercolor. I feel I’m one with and in the playground of art materials and me. The art materials come alive and share their gifts with me.

The first watercolor has gold around the inner circle. Its shine doesn’t show up here. The other flower paintings are part of a folded book with each page a different painting. The book format is a simple origami folding and tearing of paper .