Walking Labyrinth

Despite Labyrinth being one of my favorite movies, it wasn’t until last year that I understood the difference between a labyrinth and a maze. BTW, the ‘labyrinth’ in Labyrinth is a maze. A maze is designed to confuse; a labyrinth is a path for walking meditation. You set an intention, such as to receive insight for a question and walk the path, allowing the answer to come to you once you reach the center. It’s a beautiful ritual/active meditation, and I’ve been lucky to find several of them over the past year. 

The first labyrinth I happened upon by pure chance while exploring Rome, Georgia. I was panning around Google Maps and saw a label that said ‘labyrinth,’ so I decided to investigate and was rewarded with a beautiful brick labyrinth. Last summer, while in Toronto, I came across a mini-labyrinth painting on a sidewalk outside the Toronto Art Museum. I loved that it was such a simple application set up in a public space. And about midway through this year, I walked a stone labyrinth in the woods at Camp McDowell in northwest Alabama.

I’m currently working hard at painting and arting up my place in Alabama, and I’ve decided to paint a labyrinth on the giant concrete slab outside my backdoor. I haven’t decided on my design for sure, but I’m currently leaning towards the above illustration. I figure if I paint the path lines to look like a vine with flowers, it will help tie it into nature and the backyard while also giving me leeway to not have to create a perfect circle. Ideally I’d like to paint a sun/moon design in the center. The zodiac is probably too much, but this works as a concept mockup.

My current plan is to pressure wash my driveway. Use chalk and a string to measure and create my circles and check positioning. Then, use spray paint for the labyrinth itself. 

Research, Resources & References

• Labyrinth Company
  • Kits, Pavers, Stencils, Portable Canvas Labyrinths
• Portable Labyrinths
  • paint it on a dropcloth
  • use masking tape and the broom handle dispenser thing to apply to floor
  • draw in sand or with sand / bird seed, plants, string
• Discover Labyrinths
  • Youtube