24-134 Preciseness

The Mandala Lady, , , , , , , , , , , , ,
abstract background colors of greens, blues, reds, yellows, cream, and a bit of pink. the texture in the abstract looks like a bunch of tree branches. A partial, white-outlined mandala design. Think of a clock…you can see 11, 12, and 1 o’clock portions of the “clock”

Preciseness

“the quality of being very careful and accurate, especially about small details”

From the very beginning of creating my mandalas back in 1999, I knew that I wanted them to look more organic, as if they were alive. At the same time, my software engineering brain wanted everything to be perfectly symmetrical.. the idea of that felt artificial to me. My organic brain won out.

At first, I struggled with freehand drawing them, trying to get them to at least LOOK like they were symmetrical. So I came up with a compromise. SE brain created a precise template with concentric circles, and straight lines dividing the circles into 12 sections. I then placed a piece of paper over it which allowed me to see where the lines and circles were. From there I could draw freehand with my organic brain while maintaining the “precision”…keeping my SE brain happy.

Now that I create most of my designs digitally in a vector graphic app, I still use the same process. I put the “template” in the bottom layer, and then draw freehand (mostly) the different sections on different layers.

Even with my latest mandala, “Archangel #2”, it looks like it’s precisely drawn, and yet if you were to look at it closely, you’d see the organic-ness of it. The main structure/outline was drawn with precision while the patterns throughout were drawn freehand.

By doing my process this way, the mandala gives the illusion that it’s “perfectly” drawn, but it FEELS more alive (imho) with the lack of precision.

How about you? Is preciseness a core value for you?

BTW…here’s what it looked like to begin with …

abstract background colors of greens, blues, reds, yellows, cream, and a bit of pink. the texture in the abstract looks like a bunch of tree branches

joyfully,

Maureen
The Mandala Lady

*ToGAs: Team of Guides and Angels

inspiring and encouraging creativity, curiosity, and play through the art of mandalas

About the 2024 Mandalas of the Day

Each day I will create and post a mandala inspired by one of 366 “value” words chosen randomly. The objective being to discover for myself which ones would best represent my core values…and by doing so, I hope it inspires you to determine your own.

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Published by The Mandala Lady

My Mission: connecting with our Inner Light in delightful, inspiring ways For me, creating mandalas is more than just coloring pretty patterns in a circle. I do it because my spiritual evolution and creativity require it of me. My mandala designs come about within an active meditative state, connected with my higher self, my spiritual guides and nature spirits. Together, we bring into form, mandala art the allows me to re-connect with my own inner peace and joy, letting me explore and expand my own creative spirit to however far and in whatever direction I want to take it. As part of my own spiritual journey, I encourage, and hopefully inspire, others to explore their own creativity, to help them re-connect with their own inner peace and joy. As a means to that end, I make all of my mandalas available for people to color. Why should I have all the fun?

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