Flower Petal Mandala Project as Cultural Activism
Flower Petal Mandala Project
Flower Petal Mandala Project
An environmental approach to cultural activism for a small community wanting to expand its local library into the vacated fire-hall. Over the summer locals collected and dried a range of organic material from wild and cultivated spaces, storing them according to color. At the end of the tourist season, over 70 villagers, from babes to elders, came together with their sacs of petals, mandala drawings, food and instruments. Throughout the day, they created a 16-foot square Flower Petal Mandala. 2 days later the mandala was swept up and dropped into the swirling rapids of the Gatineau River.
- More background and a “recipe” for this project can be found on pages 46-48 of Ontario Arts Council’s, Community Arts Workbook…Another Vital Link (2.67 MB)
A hard-copy was originally produced to follow up on important issues and themes explored at the 1997 (Harbourfront Centre, Toronto) conference, Vital Links – Enriching Communities Through Art and Art Through Communities. It is aimed at artists and non-arts groups who are interested in what was then called community arts; art-projects in this vein are currently spoken of as social engagement. The handbook present such projects from Canada, the U.S., Britain and Australia.