Rooftop – Where India Inspires Creativity

Mandala Artwork To Calm your Mann With Nupur Jain – A Jodhpur Circle Experience

Mandala For The Mann

An artwork transcending the metaphysical boundaries and harboring a calm state of mind, Mandala is an art form for your soul. 

The uncertainties of the present world are inexplicable and fearsome. The unpredictability of events that have taken a toll of our lives have only doubled the existential fear. Now, all we look for is a control of ourselves because surrounding events are unsupportable. We didn’t realize that what we needed was a Mandala therapy.

After an instrumental beatboxing session, we put in place a session that soothed our mind and soul alike. Nupur Jain, a self-taught Mandala artist and the curator of her Instagram page @soulandsyahi knew just what would reverse the anxiety. Thus began our circle experience with some flute cure, building artistic connections over namesake and a thorough knowledge of the types of Mandalas. 

The Workshop Begins

The participants were ready with the gusto as we were at Rooftop. With the onset of diverse, lively conversations with the attendees like Naren, Harshita and Sanjeev, we kickstarted the session with Nupur’s knowledge of Mandalas. Nupur explains how Mandala artwork has been a constant support for her and how she can never be disassociated with it. She is also a firm believer of tradition: Mandalas were initially painted on walls but with modernization, it diverged into newer forms. Besides the traditional line Mandala, there is Dot Mandala, Yarn Mandala with Threads, Geometric Mandala, 3D Mandala, and Zendala.

Nupur delineates the Center of the Mandala circle as the most important, most pious part. She unravels that the center is the point of intersection and serves as a meeting point. Everything originates from this center. Everything around the center is art and we are connected to it. ‘OM’, the religious chant is written in the middle as well to align with the chakras and for several meditation purposes.

The Steps To Mandala

Starting from 29:00, we started practicing Mandala on a bookmark. The following are the steps:

  • 130 GSM thick sheet can be used as base, previously water coloured and dried.
  • We will find the center of the square sheet with a ruler and then use a compass to draw a circle. One distinctive feature of this artform is that erasure is not used ever.
  • Now from the center, we will mark the degrees using a D and then match it using a ruler to the opposite corresponding point. 
  • Then within the bigger circle, we will draw a smaller circle using compass again from the same center. 
  • Using pens of nib size 0.7, 0.6 and 0.5, we start the Mandala art which you can see from 32:50.
  • At 34:25, you can see the various Mandala designs that can be practiced onto a real canvas.
  • The further detailing continues 35:06 onwards.
  • Now, after having elucidated the details, Nupur starts filling in and thickening the lines. 
  • Voilà ! Your Mandala design is ready like Nupur’s seen at 1:05:40

With a special suggestion of laminating your work and framing it, we bid our goodbyes to Nupur. Every participant showcased their work on screen: all the sombre stunning Mandalas. Nupur loved her audience and the Rooftop experience. 

This is Rooftop for you. Here’s us signing off, until next time!

Still inquisitive about art? Join us on Instagram @rooftop_app for all the latest updates and download Rooftop app available for both iOS and Android devices.

Be creative and find your state of calm.

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