Kellie Stockdale explains the inspiration behind her mandalas at her MEAC exhibition.
Photo by
Khadija Hadjab
Kellie Stockdale, a self-taught artist from Tongala, is currently exhibiting her vibrant mandalas at Mooroopna Education and Activity Centre.
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She began her artistic journey in 2018 to manage her wellbeing.
“I started just simple, simple ones on cardboard, and then once I felt like I was okay, I sort of moved on to canvas and painted them on canvas, and (…) then I moved into bigger ones,” she said.
“(Creating) helps calm me. So, I find it very calming. It’s like a self-soothing practice and mindfulness practice.”
When asked about what inspired her to paint mandalas, Kellie explained that ancient Indian art was a key influence. ‘Mandala’ means ‘circle’ in Sanskrit, and she highlighted how these geometric designs symbolised the universe and were often used in meditation and spiritual practice. She read a quote she found inspiring:
“The study of mandalas often includes contemplating the core of reality,” she said.
“What is the true centre of the world in which we live?”
Kellie also finds inspiration in Kintsugi, the Japanese art and philosophy of repairing broken pottery with gold, where the cracks are embraced as part of the object’s history, enhancing its beauty.
Although she describes her work as a calming practice, she highlights the stop-start nature of her creative process.
“I’m very sporadic, how I do it,” she said.
“Some weeks I might spend, you know, 20 hours.
“In other weeks, I don’t spend any time at all.
“I have to be in the right mindset to, you know, to kind of paint.
“So, yeah, it’s very spasmodic.”
Kellie typically completes a painting in two to three hours. She begins at the centre and expands outward, adjusting the canvas as she works.
“We experience the seamless, unimpeded flow of everything that arises and dissolves within the reality sphere that is the mandala of our own existence,” Kellie Stockdale said.
Photo by
Khadija Hadjab
Kellie also took part in the Tongala Street Art project — a local initiative that brought together volunteer artists to paint 50 murals throughout ‘The Friendly Town’s’ main street as well as the Tongala Town Square, an ‘Open Air Art Gallery’ addition to the town, completed over six months.
From colourful flowers to Biblical scenes, the Tongala community achieved an outstanding feat: putting the town of just 3807 inhabitants on the artistic map, as it was named the 2022 Australian Street Art Awards winner for ‘Best Street Art Trail’.
Kellie credits fellow artist Murray Ross, an organiser of the Tongala Street Art project, with teaching her about shading and colour palettes, which has influenced her current work.
The mandalas on display include pieces created for various causes, such as her submission for the Victorian Mental Health Awareness project, where her work was included in a report to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.
A collection of Kellie Stockdale’s mandalas is on display at MEAC until October 22.
Photo by
Khadija Hadjab
Kellie described where she drew the inspiration for her mandalas and quoted Peter Fenner:
“We experience the seamless, unimpeded flow of everything that arises and dissolves within the reality sphere that is the mandala of our own existence,” she read.
“Nothing is out of place. Everything gives unique expression to an infinite network of conditions that are implicated in every manifestation, from the most minuscule to the most cosmic, from the most insignificant to the most magnificent.”
As Kellie’s exhibition continues at MEAC until October 22, visitors have the chance to view her collection of mandalas, which reflect a range of personal experiences and artistic influences. With works that span various causes and community projects, the exhibition offers insight into her journey as a self-taught artist.
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