Alternative Mandalas

Since researching the historical and spiritual aspects behind the mandala pattern, I've been taking into account how people subvert symbols from other cultures for use in their own, sometimes losing the message along the way. For example, mandala patterns are now very commonly used for tattoo designs, but as the idea has become more prevalent, the mandala form has evolved. This is perhaps due to tattoo designers becoming more and more ambitious and competitive with each other, and thereby creating more complex designs, rather than adhering to the traditional 4-cornered Buddhist mandala. Mandala designs are more intricate and floral, taking aspects from Indian paisleys and henna patterns, Aztec geometrics and natural forms. As these are permanent fixtures to the human body, they disregard the Buddhist tradition of destroying the mandala once it is complete. Instead they often focus on the harmony of the design, its symmetry and beauty reflecting body, mind and spirit combined. 

After considering how the mandala has changed subject to culture and time, I decided to again reinvent the mandala by creating a design whilst cooking. I made a pizza mandala, which disregards all aspects of traditional and contemporary mandala, and instead shows the impermanence of things. The design changed first when the pizza was cooked and then was destroyed by being sliced up and eaten.