On the impermanence of things

Watercolour painting of buddhist monks struggling to create a sand mandala because toddlers are interfering. One monk his holding his head in despair, another one is telling off a toddler wiping away the mandala with its hand, a third one is choking a toddler. Finally a third toddle is throwing sand in the air.

I used to admire Buddhist monks. Building a sand mandala to wipe it out the next day felt like the epitome of self-abnegation.
Then I had kids. And I thought: "If you want to know proper frustration, try building a sand mandala with toddlers around. You won't even finish the damn thing."
To prove my point, my four-year-old came to see my drawing and drooled over it. You can see the stain it left to the right of the buddhist monk at the back.

< previous next >

< back to all paintings