Lux Mandala translates of a rare optical phenomenon into a mechanism for contemplative experience. A field of retro-reflective glass microspheres are adhered to a wall-mounted substrate and illuminated by a single white LED light. The microspheres backscatter incoming rays of light towards the viewer. This generates the appearance of an ethereal prismatic halo. No two viewers can observe the same halo, and the phenomenon ceases to exist when the work is viewed from beyond the angle of illumination.
The viewer’s shadow is therefore cast at the halo’s centre, becoming an integral part of the viewing experience. My intention is that through an engagement with the image of one’s own shadow encompassed by this lucent mandala and the recognition of the phenomenon’s inherent transience, viewers might experience a cathartic sense of wonder, or perhaps, even a fleeting recognition of the transcendent within themselves and within the world we occupy.