Visitors can touch the sand as images are projected in evolving scale from the molecular structure of a single grain of sand – achieved my means of a scanning electron microscope (SEM)- to the recognizable image of the complete mandala, and then back again. The sand mandala of Chakrasamvara seen in this installation was created by Tibetan Buddhist monks from the Gaden Lhopa Khangtsen Monastery in India, in conjunction with the “Circle of Bliss” exhibition on Nepalese and Tibetan Buddhist Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Inspired by watching the nanoscientist at work, purposefully arranging atoms just as the monk laboriously creates sand images grain by grain, this work brings together the Eastern and Western minds through their shared process centered on patience. Both cultures use these bottom-up building practices to create a complex picture of the world from extremely different perspectives. With generous support from the David W. Bermant Foundation, the Nanomandala was premiered at the exhibition NANO at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

With generous support from the David W. Bermant Foundation.

Watch more videos of NANO on Vimeo and Youtube.

If interested in watching the full Nanomandala, contact artscinow@gmail.com for access.