Here we have a few images from my second model.
This model is the one representing the Sanchi style of stupas.
And here's a detail shot of the top of the structure. A more substantial post (and maybe a rant) will come later on tonight.
Warning! Warning!! - - - Perspective and proportion sadly died when I met them. So the sketches are just that: sketches.
Well I finally uploaded the sketches for the three stupa models that I plan to make. The first sketch is that of the Great Stupa at Sanchi, India. This is one of the oldest Stupas built and when compared to the other structures one can see that the main parts of the building are still present in one form or another. In fact if you go to my Flickr site, I put notes on three images to show which are the main parts of each structure.
This is a sketch of a dagoba or stupa from Sri Lanka. Some of the elements, such as the fence, from the Indian stupa may be missing in the Sri lankan structure but the overall look is still quite similar. For example the Dome is still a very prominent part of the stupa.
This one is a sketch of a typical chorten or Tibetan stupa. With these structures two of the most noticeable changes visually is that the dome is much smaller and the spire is much more prominent .
Every time I try to explain my project to people (from family, to professors, to classmates) the first question they ask is: -Wait, a what?-, followed by: -What's a Stupa?-. So lets start by explaining what they are:
In Buddhism one of the most important structures they make is the Stupa. In them they keep the relics of influential Buddhists, like the historical Buddha. The purpose of these structures though is not to simply be a place to preserve these remains, but instead they are places for the Buddhist devotee to visit and be spiritually influenced by it. The basic ritual surrounding stupas consists of the person circumambulating (yeah! big word... it means to walk around) several times, each time closer to the center of the stupa. The idea behind this is that as they get closer to the relics in the stupa, it reflects how they are getting closer to achieving their goal of reaching Nirvana. Another way the stupa helps the devotee is that the stupas are covered with images whose meaning they would interpret and so be able to learn more about the religion and better their karma.
Image of the Stupa at Sanchi taken by Marc Shandro
http://flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=34958707&size=m
