Mandala Workshop

Mandala Workshop

Join us for a Mandala Workshop with art therapist Rebecca Thomas.
When: Saturday, November 12th 10:15 am-2pm.
Cost: $55 (light lunch is included)

You can Register for this event by emailing us at theagoraborealis@gmail.com or by calling 318.268.3011. *Please Register before Thursday, November 10th

In this workshop, Dr. Thomas will briefly talk about mandalas, followed by two hours of creating a mandala using multiple media. All materials will be provided. After art making, a light lunch will be served during which participants can choose to share their mandala and get feedback.

Mandala is a Sanskrit word that means circle. Humans have always created circle forms. They are seen in ancient carvings and cave paintings, in eastern sacred rituals, in the earliest stages of drawing as children begin to create intentional form from scribbles. In ancient eastern cultures, mandalas were used to encourage contemplation and concentration. Buddhists use mandalas as an aid in inducing certain mental states and to encourage the spirit to move along its path of evolution. Many religious traditions have used circles as a pattern to illustrate spiritual ideas, wholeness and unity. Neuroscience tells us that a circular form drawn within the rectangular shape of paper binds attention and improves focus. Art therapists use circle forms to contain and encourage order and balance.

For Carl Jung, the mandala represents the self or the center of the total personality. Mandalas can contain and organize symbolic communication from the unconscious in a form that can be assimilated by the conscious mind. He advocated respectful attention to the symbols of the unconscious as a way to enhance personal growth.

Rebecca Thomas, Ph.D., ATR-BC is a board certified art therapist with a Ph.D. in Psychology. She has been using art as a mental health modality for 30 years. In this workshop, the research of the Swiss Psychiatrist, Carl Jung and that of art therapists, Joan Kellogg and Suzanne Fincher will be utilized to structure and understand the mandala.

**There must be a minimum of 10 participants for the class to take place.