This week’s MotD theme: April Showers Bring May Flowers
An amazing color pencil artist and good friend, Kris Mitchell, also enjoys a bit of photography. Here she captured this image of Albanian Spurge (Euphorbia Characias). Look at all of these bountiful chartreuse mandalas. It’s like each one has a collar around itself, heralding their spring arrival.
About Kris and a plug for her art:
I have been making art for more than 40 years. Fueled by a profound love of the natural world, my creation of art comes from a driving force to show the sacred landscape that surrounds me in all its complexity. I am endlessly searching for ways to express the visions in my soul. Art is the language I speak; color is my voice, design my words. Visual conceptions become my sermons. Hues forms and textures randomly intermix, unify, and commingle to give the common-place a sense of spirituality on my canvas.
You can view her beautiful color pencil art on KrisMitchell.com
About Euphorbia from Euphorbiaceae.org
The main uses of spurges are horticultural. … Some species of Euphorbia have been used in folk medicine over the centuries, especially in the Euphorbia esula alliance. Latex of E. cooperi and E. ingens has been used locally in Africa to stun fish; grass soaked in latex is thrown into a pond and the fish then rise to the surface. Candelilla wax is obtained from E. antisyphilitica and used as a food additive, glazing agent, and component of lip balm.
The milky sap or latex of spurges is suggested to have a protective and defensive role in helping heal wounds and in deterring potential plant-eaters. …some of them are toxic and potentially carcinogenic.
Inspiration for Today
Today’s MotD encourages us to take note of qualities and characteristics about ourselves that we deem worthy of heralding, a task which many of us may find challenging since we’re probably more used to proclaiming our faults and failings.
So for today at least, let’s take the time to honor and appreciate our finer qualities. Tomorrow we can work on improving the rest. 🙂
Happy Coloring!
If you would want your mandala or your idea for a mandala to be considered for the “Mandala of the Day”, read about how on the Participate page. It’s easy! Or recommend one you’ve seen via my Contact page.
Mandala of the Day 