2017-082: Lights Mandala in Color

Lights Mandala in Color by me (Maureen Frank)

This week’s theme: Lights

I present my coloring/painting of this week’s Mandala of the Week: Lights (from Sunday’s MotD post). Aside for the “cool” blue background, most of my colors were warmer than I normally use. It’s good to break out of the norm once in a while to explore and experiment. Overall, I’m pleased with the results.

For this painting, I used M. Graham acrylics and Golden’s iridescent paint on Canson’s mixed media paper, enhanced it with uni-ball signo gel pen.

In the next day or two, I’ll be posting images of my progress through this painting on my ArtProgressions.com blog site.

Inspiration for Today

Circle Game [youtube]
Joni Mitchell, L.A. Express

Yesterday a child came out to wonder
Caught a dragonfly inside a jar
Fearful when the sky was full of thunder
And tearful at the falling of a star

And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We’re captive on the carousel of time
We can’t return we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game

Then the child moved ten times round the seasons
Skated over ten clear frozen streams
Words like, when you’re older, must appease him
And promises of someday make his dreams

And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We’re captive on the carousel of time
We can’t return we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game

Sixteen springs and sixteen summers gone now
Cartwheels turn to car wheels through the town
And they tell him,
Take your time, it won’t be long now
Till you drag your feet to slow the circles down

And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We’re captive on the carousel of time
We can’t return we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game

So the years spin by and now the boy is twenty
Though his dreams have lost some grandeur coming true
There’ll be new dreams, maybe better dreams and plenty
Before the last revolving year is through

And the seasons they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We’re captive on the carousel of time
We can’t return, we can only look behind
From where we came
And go round and round and round
In the circle game

And go round and round and round
In the circle game