Some Of My Favorite Mandalas

Here are some of my favorite mandalas - now available at Image Kind:


Winter by Shirley Gibson



Affection by Shirley Gibson



Unborn by Shirley Gibson



Crucifix by Shirley Gibson

About these Mandalas:

I created these Mandalas using a number of different graphics programs to slice up digital images of my art, which I then reassembled into circular patterns - or mandalas.

The project began, as many of my projects often do, with a simple experiment. The process was so interesting, the results so astonishingly fascinating, that I found it impossible to quit with a "reasonable" amount of images. By the time I had created well over 100 different mandalas, it really did begin to feel as if I was in the grip of "mandala madness".

The images themselves pull me into a meditative and healing space, and I do hope they have a similar effect on you, the viewer.

What is a mandala?

The word “Mandala,” is a Sanskrit word which means "sacred circle." A more literal translation might read "container of essences." As an art form, the mandala provides a concrete symbol of the artist's absorption into a sacred center. It is meant to draw both the artist and the viewer into an encounter with the "center" or as the Navajo call it, "a spiritual place of emergence."

Mandalas are most often circular, though some are square, or a combination of the two. They incorporate the use of colors, shapes, symbols, symmetry and repetition to aid in ordering and focusing one's life, and therefore facilitate healing. By focusing on it, both mandala artist and meditator can open to the divine energy of the Creator, and to the contents of his or her own spiritual and psychological self. They are used as healing and transforming art in Native American sand painting, Hindu and Tibetan Buddhist rituals, and modern psychotherapy.

Mandalas are a particularly effective tool for healing, or for creating positive energy, because not only are they beautiful, they incorporate bright colors, shapes, and rich symbolism. In addition to this already powerful synergy, the repetition of designs, and the symmetry draws the viewer to the centre, which is symbolic of the path of self discovery and the goal of enlightenment.