I’ve been working with homemade inks for a few years now and find it to be one of the most rewarding aspects of my personal practice, so I’m very excited about this new workshop, PLANTAGE, which is coming soon to the curriculum here at the School.

Let me tell you a wee bit more about why and how it came to be.

Environmental Artist?

I don’t know how anyone can be an artist in these times and not be concerned about the material aspect of our work.

There’s the issue of creative output, for starters – how much will ever be too much stuff? Do we need to create more to add to the increasing pile?

Not to mention the consumerist angle, where we’re encouraged to buy yet more art supplies to complete our stash and take advantage of trends and special offers.

For many, there’s also the concern about the toxicity of our ingredients, the waste and disposal process, the health of our bodies, rivers and the sea.

Mindful Relationships

Here at the Mandala Magic School, I’ve wanted to begin with mindfulness towards relationships outside of our own world, or journal pages.

It’s part of my own practice and I’ve still a long way to go.

Moving forward, it’s an increasingly important aspect of how we build courses and workshops here.

We’re a long way from being perfect – but as long as we keep this value top of our list, then I know we’ll be moving in the right direction.

Homemade Botanical Inks

Rather than working from an angle of ‘harnessing our natural resources,’ PLANTAGE invites our members to create in partnership with their environment to produce homemade inks from the plants that surround and sustain them.

Homemade botanical inks help deepen our relationship with the land with which we interact just by the simple act of breathing! When we turn our attention to our neighbourly plants, we’ll soon begin to find that they call for our attention.

There’s a partnership to be fostered and a delight of interaction that helps us far beyond the act of crafting our own art supplies.

With these new responsibly made materials we can create deeply symbolic work that links us to so much beyond our small self.

And from this starting point, the possibilities are endless.

Upon its release, PLANTAGE is only open to Mandala Magic School members. Explore our membership options or sign up to our email list for more news and updates.