Mandala CCLXXVIII, Thomas the Tank Engine

 

(Above:  Mandala CCLXXVIII, Thomas the Tank Engine.  Custom framed:  25 3/4" x 25 3/4".  Found objects hand-stitched to a section of a vintage quilt. Objects include:  A wooden plate on which is stitched assorted beer bottle caps and the copper top of a cookie press; assorted cookie press discs; felt hammers for a piano; green lids with red rabies pet tags; eight, gold iced tea spoons; metal clips; blue lids; copper beverage can tabs; four, small Thomas the Tank Engines; assorted buttons and beads. Click on any image to enlarge.)

I worried about using the little Thomas the Tank Engines on a mandala.  I thought that it might result in an artwork that had too childish look.  I wondered if it would limit its attractiveness to a potential client.  After all, who really buys a piece of artwork costing over five hundred dollars to decorate a child's room?

 

(Above:  Detail of Mandala CCLXXVIII, Thomas the Tank Engine.)

But then I thought about it some more!  Just because I don't know anyone who would spend that amount to decorate a kid's room doesn't mean others feel that way!  Didn't I have original artwork in my kid's bedrooms?  Well ... yes I did!  Plus ... we bought a rather expensive platform and all the parts for a Thomas the Tank Engine station for that room!  That's when I realized that Thomas the Tank Engine has passed from the currently most popular thing for a boy into the realm of nostalgia!

 

(Above:  Mandala CCLXXVIII, Thomas the Tank Engine.)

The facts of the matter are that I associate Thomas the Tank Engine with my younger son ... who is now thirty-five years old!  Plus, the history of Thomas the Tank Engine is actually ten years older than my husband!  He first appeared in The Railway Series, a British's children's book by Wilbert Awdry in 1945.  His popularity in England grew and grew until he was a hit all over the world. The television program reached the USA in 1989.  In the 1990s, Thomas the Tank Engine was a sensation ... which accounts for my thinking of it as "childish" and not necessarily nostalgic!  Now, I just feel old! LOL!