Exclusive: Art: Sandra joran and Robert Maddox-Harle

---Sandra Joran and Robert Maddox-Harle

An Enchanted Digital World

I walked through a magical garden, cobble-stone path beneath my feet, strange birds chirping and flying through the flowering plants which led me towards a building of stone and light. Bindu Gallery bid me - Enter.

I stood in amazement as sculptures revolved and pulsated, I noticed a 3D spherical mandala near the stairs, I approached I stepped inside and sat on a red velvet cushion. I was looking out through the iridescent geometric light patterns of the mandala. An indescribable mystical experience followed as the mandala energy flowed through me.

No, I had not died! No, I was not under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs! I had logged onto Second Life and visited a friend's Virtual Gallery Exhibition. 

Second Life (SL) is a virtual (digital) 3D computer-based world – it is not a game, not a social media app., but a digital version of real life (RL). Like the fragrance of coffee brewing, it is a difficult thing to describe, immersion and participation is the best way to understand SL. As with most things the press and television media has also distorted and misrepresented SL with claims of ruined lives, sexual abduction, huge costs, death and so on. Untrue! 

Any individual adult, anywhere in the world may join the SL community for free, create their own avatar – the entity you live, work and function as in SL – then create art, build astonishing architecture, create bizarre fashion or fly on a magic carpet. Flying or teleportation is the standard way to move around the various regions (Sims) of SL. If you wish to buy your own land you must become a premium member which costs approximately $99 USD per year, this returns a stipend paid to you of 300 linden dollars a week. If you do not like flying you may use some of your lindens to buy a car and drive around or catch a train!

Why Lindens? Philip Linden (Rosedale) was the creator and brainchild of SL. He attended the Burning Man event in the desert of Nevada USA many years ago, this enormously influenced the already nascent digital, virtual version of SL. Linden Labs own SL but the actual community is created by the residents with very few rules or regulations. So, the basic currency of trading is called a Linden. SL is not the only virtual 3D community some others are; Blue Mars; InWorldz; OS Grid; Twinity and Onverse.

That is enough basic information to orientate those not familiar with SL. 

As with most digital software and applications things evolve and become more sophisticated and mostly user friendly. Back before the www who could have ever imagined such a sophisticated and virtually-real entity as SL?

The images below are from some of Sandra’s SL exhibitions, although she specialises in painting mandalas in RL, she also creates magical enchanting artworks within SL itself. 

Enjoy!

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Setu, January 2025

Images of Summer

by Sandra Joran

Sandra Joran

Received First Prize for Artwork at High School 1967.
Electrical & Mechanical Drafting Certificate East Sydney Tech. 1968/70.
Drafting with manufacturing and consulting engineers, Sydney 1968/76.
Exploring materials and processes to pursue new artistic direction 1975/80.
Commercial Art Diploma with the Art Training Institute, Victoria 1981/83.
Black & White Portraiture and mixed-media artworks 1981/94.
Creative Embroidery and Needlework Courses 1985/86.
Abstract wall pieces and art concepts in Fibre 1980/2000.
Art Course - Australian Flying Art School, Qld. Units 1 to 5 1987/88.
Diploma of Arts - Tapestry - Warrnambool, Victoria 1994/2000.
1980 to1989 Painting & drawing & photography.
1989 to 2000 Created Fibre Wall Pieces using tapestry weaving methods.
1999 Changed direction after years of contemplation. Utilising my technical drafting skills into one area only, which I felt would inspire me for a long time to come. I began my passion for Mandalas. These are all hand painted, no prints, no computer programs. I have concentrated on creating and exhibiting these for the last 25 years. Works held in numerous private and public collections, and featured in many print publications. My second passion alongside mandalas is creating art works and exhibiting in the virtual world of Second Life.
sandrajoran1@gmail.com
http://sandrajoran1.wix.com/mandalas

These images all celebrate the joy of summer. Some are my original paintings, some photographs, and others, digital images created in the virtual world Secondlife. No AI has been used.

Sandra Joran 2024

Summer Seascape: Acrylic on Canvas

Fishing Boats:  Manipulated Photo

Summer Sunset: Manipulated Photo

Red Robin full bloom: Photograph

Sun Worshipper: Acrylic on Canvas

Surfer Girl: Virtual World Photograph

Summer Breeze: Manipulated Photo

Beach Shack: Virtual world construction & photo

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Setu, May 2024

Hand Painted Mandalas

by Sandra Joran

Sandra Joran

Sandra has been creating her hand painted mandalas for over sixteen years. Each one is a one-off original, some on canvas, others on art paper using mixed media. She uses a large range of inks, paints, coloured pencils, metallic gold and silver paints, and gouache to create these highly detailed works. All works consist of geometric symmetry and usually contain symbols referring to esoteric, occult and spiritual matters. In Sandra’s own words, “To me mandalas are symbols of harmony and peace. They represent beauty in the world, stillness and calm. Their centre radiates out to a circumference and outer circle that has no beginning or end, wholeness, completeness.”
http://sandrajoran1.wix.com/mandalas

Astral Wings Mandala

Celtic Thread Mandala

Crescent Moon Mandala

Doves Of Peace Mandala

Eternal Flame Mandala

Note: You may click on any image to see a higher resolution version

Table of Contents, December 2016

A Bridge Between Two Worlds Interview

Mandala artist  Marlene Lee (K'iali) interviews mandala artist Sandra Joran (Sheba Blitz)

Sandra Joran is a mandala artist, creating hand-painted mandalas in mixed media in Real Life (RL). She also exhibits mandalas in the virtual world called Second Life (SL), here her avatar name is Sheba Blitz. Recently another SL artist K’iali  did a short interview with Sheba which is reprinted below. The images associated with the questions and answers are all screen shots of Sheba’s SL creations, the mandalas on the SL gallery walls are imported (uploaded) from scans of her original RL mandalas. The hanging Dream Catchers are created in SL with the original mandala texture applied to them. These rotate slowly and engagingly in the dynamic SL environment.

Sandra – Sheba finds the RL mixed-media mandala painting process  and the virtual computer world of SL mutually complementary, a setu which she crosses daily with ease. Each creative world has satisfying aspects which the other does not offer.


Sheba Blitz is an Australian artist who creates mandalas. In the smallest room of Gallery 24 Sheba explains that  "A mandala is an ancient and sacred symbol of the universe. Classically in the form of a circle (the Cosmos) enclosing a square (Earthbound matter) . . ."

Following is an interview with Sheba and how she develops her mandala art.

Sheba: What kind of artist are you? and what medium do you work in?

Sandra: I am a Mandala Artist. I work in mixed media on canvas and paper. I paint my mandalas with gouache, acrylics and metallic paints.

Sheba: What is your process? Do you work from photos? Do you work from life? How do you approach your art?

Sandra: I get ideas from music, books, astrology and tarot symbolism or whatever I'm into at the time. I sketch the idea out in my art diary first and when I'm happy with the result I draw it accurately onto my final surface. I then begin to paint and just let it happen.

Sheba: Did you have any formal training in art? If so, what university? If not did you take workshops or learned from books?

Sandra: Yes I did a Drafting Course at a college in Sydney Australia, when I left school. I then did a Commercial Art Course and a Diploma of Arts from Melbourne, Australia.

Sheba: What is your earliest experience with art that you remembered that mark your path into becoming an artist?

Sandra: Colouring in the Sunday papers when I was 10 years old. Then winning first prize at school for a design I did, the prize was a book about Picasso.

Sheba: Who influenced you to be an artist? A family member, a teacher?

Sandra: No one I remember. I just always enjoyed being creative, painting and making art, much more than anything else.

Sheba: What is your reason to exhibit in Second Life? and what is your experience had been? Any positive or negative. And has exhibiting in SL affected your RL art?

Sandra: I didn't come into SL to exhibit my artworks as I didn't know much about virtual worlds and what could be accomplished inworld. But being an artist in RL it was a natural path to follow and to seek out fellow artists in the virtual. I started going to exhibitions and art openings and buying artworks from artists from around the world. It was fantastic! I was then asked to exhibit my own work, which I did. My experience has been wonderful, and I love being part of the art world in SL.

The images below are of Sandra’s RL one-off hand-painted mandalas.

 Fig.1 Indian Rhythms Mandala

 Fig. 2 Buddhist Lotus Mandala

Fig. 3 Lila Mandala

Fig. 4 Sri Yantra Mandala

Fig. 5 Journey Mandala

Fig. 6 Medieval Mandala

July 2016 Table of Contents

Sandra Joran

·        Born in Sydney Australia  

·        Received First Prize for Artwork at High School.

·        Drafting Course (Electrical and Mechanical) at East Sydney Tech. 1968/70.

·        Eight years in Sydney drafting with manufacturing and consulting engineers.

·        Started exploring different materials and processes to pursue artistic direction.

·        Commercial Art Diploma with the Art Training Institute, Victoria. Australia. 1981/83.

·        Concentrated on Black & White Portraiture while investigating ways to express abstract art concepts in Fibre 1983/85.

·        Creative Embroidery and Needlework Courses 1985/86.

·        Art Course - Australian Flying Art School, Qld. Units 1 to 5 1987/88.

·        Diploma of Arts  - Tapestry.  Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. 1994/2000

·        Fibre Wallpieces created for many years, using tapestry weaving and needlepoint techniques.  Main medium being pure wools, wool blends, cottons, hemp, sisal, jute, paint and found objects such as bones, feathers and rocks from nature.

·        In January 1999 she changed direction after many years of contemplation. Deciding to utilise her geometric and technical drafting skills into one area only, which she felt would inspire her for a long time to come.  She began her passion for designing, drawing, creating and painting mandalas.  These works incorporate the circle, symbol of the universe, the square, symbol of earthbound matter and generally exhibit a central point, radial symmetry and cardinal points.  She paints these in mixed media generally using gouache, inks, pastels, metallic paints, pencils, acrylics and enamels either on watercolour paper or canvas.

·        Mandalas can be used for meditation, contemplation, healing or simply for visual pleasure. 

·        She has been exhibiting since 1985 and have participated in hundred's of group
exhibitions. The majority of my art works are held in private collections.   

·        Her website is :  http://sandrajoran1.wix.com/mandalas

 
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