This is the first time a three-dimensional representation of this Mandala has ever been displayed in the Southern Hemisphere.
The considerable installation of 100 figures is made from recycled cardboard and paper arranged to create the traditional Himalayan Buddhist Mandala.
John's work is dominated by a recycling ethos as a way of re-appropriating or taking control of discarded things.
In doing so, it gives new purpose to something that may have been considered waste.
All 100 figures express their newfound identity and meaning through the Mandala in this astonishing exhibition.
You may never look at a cardboard box the same way after entering the fascinating world of the Mandala.
The exhibition by John Bradley is an opportunity for the community to step inside and walk through the world of the Mandala, working their way through the complex ideas and understandings of the 100 figures of the peaceful and wrathful deities associated with the Tibetan Book of the Dead, The Great Liberation Through Hearing, a text written in the eighth century by Padmasambhava and later refound by Karma Lingua in the 14th century.
The sculptures will be accompanied by a collection of large paintings which, through John's reflections, relate to aspects of the sculptural pieces.
During the exhibition, John will hold two enriching workshops.
Chanting from the Heart workshop is for all ages and leaves behind the idea that you cannot sing.
This workshop will use a number of important Himalayan Buddhist mantras and, as you learn to chant them, you will also learn some of their deeper meanings.
The 90-minute workshop starts at 10am on Sunday, February 16.
Departures and dissolution is for adults only.
When one engages in serious Buddhist study, two things become important: The preciousness of human life and that all living things will die.
This workshop will explore the theme of symbolically saying goodbye to our life and traditional meditation on death.
The cost is a gold coin donation.
Registration for the workshops is through The Foundry Arts Space Facebook page orwebsite at emai.org.au
