The Rose of Sharon is a Lady

                                          The Rose of Sharon is a Lady

 I started the mandala by choosing stencils for the beginning shapes and design. I was feeling uncomfortable with the idea of stencils. I thought it would block my intuition. However, as I worked with the stencils as tools for the intuition, I found that I could use them in the beginning process of creating the mandala. I also decided that I wanted the mandala to have more of a painterly effect and so I used acrylics to paint in the shapes as well as the negative space around the shapes. I chose the colors that I used intuitively. In reflection on the mandala, I was reminded of the Cathedral of Notre  Dame's Window , the Virgin Mary in Mexico and the flower Rose of Sharon. I named the mandala Rose of Sharon not really consciously knowing why all these things were related. It was after researching all three  that I saw why I named it The Rose of Sharon is a Lady. The circular window that I remember in Paris is a mandala. Our Lady of Guadalupe Virgin Mary and the symbol of the Rose of Sharon representing Mary. They are connected to the name of the mandala. It was a powerful experience as the message was that I should trust my own intuition and the creation process even when it does not make sense intellectually. It also showed to not not be closed to any one material or technique in creating the mandalas.