My First Digital Mandala

I just whipped up this digital mandala from one of my ATC images. I thought it turned out pretty good for my first try (with two kids going bonkers in the room to boot). I sometimes find digital manipulation too...cerebral to really feel like art to me, but it's a nice change of pace once in a while when I'm feeling stuck or burnt out. (Stuck being the issue today.) It helps to do something out of the ordinary while I let the issue that's bothering me work itself out.

I've done some other pieces this week as well, but without a scanner I can't post a lot of what I've been doing. Even the little crocheted basket I made won't show up well on the digital camera because it's a tad too small. I liked the way it turned out though. It has a sort of Southwestern/Native American pottery look to it. It is primarily turquoise and was crocheted with four different weights and textures of yarn at once. It's begging for beads though, so when I find the right ones I want to bead the rim. Don't know how I'm going to ever post it though if I can't get a good picture of it!

Hmmm...I just noticed that this mandala has a rather Southwestern/Native American feel to it as well. It's funny how what I've been reading about, talking about and looking at has an effect on my art whether I mean for it to or not. I've been reading and talking about alternative healing techniques and shamanism in various cultures, and I've been looking at a lot of Hopi and Mexican art. Can ya' tell?