1. What type of line did you use to establish value in your Mandala?

I used a lot of stippling and controlled scribble to create value but also rhythm in my Mandala. 

 

2. What areas are you proudest of?

I’m most proud of the sea shells. This is because at first I really did not like them. I didn’t like them because I accidently made one darker than the rest. But when I went through and made some other ones darker as well it created more unity among them which really made it more aesthetically pleasing. So I’m proud because I was able to transform something that I didn’t like to be one of my favourite areas in the piece. I am also proud that I incorporated every pen technique we were practicing into the shells. 

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3. What area would you change/improve if you had more time?

If I had more time I would have liked to make sure all the rings were perfect circles and been more precise with details. Some of the outer rings I freehanded the edges of and I think they look good but I still wish I had taken the time to use a compass to make it neater. I also would have liked to make some of the scribbling and lettering at the edges more precise.

 

4. Explain your visual representation of self. What designs/symbols did you incorporate and why?

I used a lot of symbols about where I lived to incorporate myself into the mandala. I live in the beaches so I drew swans and shells which are things I see often when I take my dog for a walk by the beach. In the centre I drew a pansy which is one of my favourite flowers in the garden in my backyard. I drew my sun, moon, and rising constellations which are the three most important zodiac signs in a person’s astrological chart. I am a scorpio sun, virgo moon, and capricorn rising. I also included little sun, moon, and rising symbols to reference this. I also drew butterflies because they are one of my favourite animals. I spent the summer at the zoo for biology during which I spent a lot of time at the butterfly area in the malayan woods pavilion with my friends. I always remember having a lot of fun watching them fly around and having them land on you occasionally. 

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5.Explain the artistic process. Did you have a plan from the beginning of shapes/styles/texture you wanted to incorporate for a specific feeling or did you follow a more reactive approach working ring by ring and adjusting your plan throughout the process?

I had a plan in my sketchbook for almost every ring of the mandala. I kept a lot of these ideas the same but changed them slightly. I always knew I really wanted to incorporate stippling because it is my favourite pen technique. To make it not look random I used it several times in the mandala as a background. I always knew I wanted to make it very personal and not very much looking like a very traditional mandala. Almost all of the symbols incorporated in the mandala are things very significant to me. My main goal was that I wanted someone to know it was my mandala without seeing my name attached to it just based on the things I incorporated. As I worked I adapted to using the same patterns multiple times to give it more rhythm like a traditional mandala. This is most evident in the pointed edging motif on some of the rings of my mandala. I stayed true to my original plan for the most part but worked to create more unity by using techniques and shapes multiple times.