Creating the 2022 mandala at Bud Werner Library.
In August 2022, Tibetan Buddhist monks from Drepung Loseling Monastery return to Steamboat Springs for a residency at Bud Werner Library, where they will create a Mandala Sand Painting from Tuesday, Aug. 9 through Sunday, Aug. 14 in Library Hall. Learn about the monks’ visit here.
In addition, community members will have the opportunity to try the technique of sand painting by filling in the line drawing I created. This Steamboat Springs mandala has many of the unique activities, landscapes, icons, and wildlife that make our home special.
To create this mandala, I drew it full size, 4x4 feet in diameter, and then traced it with sharpie. This is the size that the community sand painting will be in real life. I photographed the drawing and cleaned up the image digitally. Then I had it printed on my fine art paper, 18x18 inches across, and painted that with gouache. I had several line drawings printed and plan to paint an edition of 5 that will be available for sale. Please contact me if you are interested in an original painting.
As a fundraiser for the library, Ohana did a limited edition print run of the mandala on t-shirts. We got to pick our shirt and ink color, it was so fun! Thank you, Ohana!!
The closing ceremony of the Monks’ visit was really wonderful. The completed mandala was blessed and then only had about an hour before it was swept into a swirl of sand. Most of the sand was given to those present in little bags, but some was carried in a procession and poured into the Yampa River.
