Mandala

Mandala Activity Packs

By Editor · On June 6, 2020

Wherever you are, in 2020 we invite you to make a Mandala between 12-27 Sept and share it with us using #T100Calling or in this Facebook group.

This year the festival is a call to action to rise to local challenges through the collective process of designing and making beautiful large-scale mandalas inspired by Scottish artist, Therese Muskus.

This new online programme is an opportunity to be Inspired, to Reflect, to Make and Do. You can also use it as a tool to think about your own values and the action you can take with your local community.

Mandala Activity Pack Downloads

An introduction to mandalas and lots of fun activities to explore.

Mandalas in Hinduism and Buddhism are artworks of various designs symbolizing the universe. We aim to use them to bring communities together; to reflect on the issues they face and seek potential solutions whilst collectively making beautiful pieces of art from locally sourced materials.

The Mandalas can become a springboard for reflections and promises to act - moving us from individual to community; from personal to environmental. Your thoughts, reflections and creations will contribute to the programme, engaging others who can in turn inspire us.

MANDALA THEMES

Sun 13 Sept

Tide Turning: Beach

Mandala materials: natural materials e.g. cockle shells, stones, seaweed

Respect for the Earth and the natural landscape in which we live. Climate Change, coastal erosion and flooding- what impact is the lockdown having on the environment? We invite you to make a mandala using pebbles or shells on your daily walk.

Tues 15 Sept

Tide Turning: Green Spaces

Mandala Materials: sticks, leaves

For this mandala, walk to green spaces in your area, find a quiet space, and use materials found there - for example sticks or leaves. When the tide turns on COVID 19, what changes will you make in your daily life?

germination title

Wed 16 Sept

Germination: Parks

Mandala materials: Seed pods, leaves flowers ferns

Celebrating forests and the essential role public green spaces have played throughout lockdown. Walk in your local park, make your mandala, see things in the detail of a leaf that you’ve never noticed before. Materials might be leaves, seed pods or things you might find on a forest floor.

Spring Clean title

Sat 19 Sept

Spring Clean: at Home

Mandala materials: Repurposed, found and recycled plastic

Recycling, cleaning up our environment, collecting plastic from the Thames, the beaches and the foreshore. We invite you to recycle it into a beautiful mandala. What are the alternatives to plastic?

Sun 20 Sept

Make Do and Mend: at Home

Mandala materials: Ceramics, sea glass and other foreshore gems.

Upcycling, turning broken things into beautiful things. We invite you to carve out some time at home to create a space for yourself; reclaim an area in your home to get creative with ceramics, glass or other neglected items.

Shoes title

Tues 22 Sept

In Other People’s Shoes: Take a Walk

Mandala materials: Shoes

Wear someone else’s shoes for the day, what does it feel like? What happens when you are walking? We invite you to take a favourite pair of shoes and share stories with your family, reflecting on the journeys you and others have travelled on foot, then design a shoe mandala.

Wed 23 Sept

Imagination Our Nation: In Your Mind

Mandala materials: Use your imagination!

Creativity, wellbeing and mindfulness can make dreams come true! We ask you to have fun and help us to think about what other materials we could use for mandalas by making your own, sharing with us the things that matter to you.

Sat 26 Sept

Renewal: In Your Garden/ Street

Mandala materials: Recycled bricks, concrete, cement

Turning landfill into a community park, where insects and wildlife can thrive again. We invite you to make a mandala to create a natural habitat in your garden.

Sun 27 Sept

Grow Your Own: In Your Garden/ Allotment

Mandala materials: Local produce

Sustainable communities, grow your own vegetables and plants, foraging, live a healthy lifestyle. We invite you to make a mandala from local produce or things you have grown yourself. Plant seeds for the future and share your dreams for a world that is changing. We can make it better.

T100 Background

Thurrock 100 Festival was started by Kinetika in 2015 and over 5 years in collaboration with a wide range of partners it has brought people closer, connected them to local places and spaces, and linked organisations together that collectively address individual disadvantage. The concept of T100 is very simple, based on a theme selected for the year, a programme of walks is devised by a range of local groups and organisations which incorporate community-led activities that respond to the theme.

The magic of the concept is its simplicity as a framework. It enables groups to come up with their own ideas, develop them as separate projects if preferred, then showcase and share them to the wider community as part of a bigger whole.

2020 marks a significant moment of change for us all and the theme this year is T100 Calling; a call to action for communities to come together and creatively re-imagine our future. Everyone can get involved!

Find out more about T100, how it came about and all the amazing things we’ve done so far, in our T100 Exhibition.