Vijali Hamilton

Vijali Hamilton is a large-scale Earthworks artist. She created an Earth mandala that she calls "World Wheel" -- twelve monumental stone sculptures and ceremonial performances circling the globe on the 34th latitudinal parallel. These sculptures and performances were created by Vijali in collaboration with each host community. The World Wheel focuses on spiritual ecological issues activating an awareness of the interrelatedness of all life. Through active participation with local artists, performers and community, World Wheel addresses the people's deepest personal and social concerns, working creatively with them to resolve cultural conflicts. World Wheel provides a transformative experience for the community.

The World Wheel took seven years beginning in Malibu, California and continued on to the Seneca Reservation, New York -- Alicante on the Mediterranean Sea of Spain -- the Umbrian Forest of Italy -- the island of Tinos in Greece -- the desert of Egypt -- the banks of the Dead Sea in Israel and Palestine -- a tiny village in West Bengal, India -- a cave in Shoto Terdrom, Tibet -- a national park in Kunming, Western China -- on the banks of Lake Baikal, Siberia. In October of 1993, the culmination of this journey was in Japan at the ancient Shinto shrine of Tenkawa.

After completing the first World Wheel, Vijali created a second World Wheel, circling the equator forming a nine-pointed star with its center as the center of the earth. The first site is in the Andes of Ecuador. The following sites are Ecuador Amazon, Brazil, Nigeria, Kenya, India, Australia, South Pacific Ocean, Kiribati, culminating in California.

"The motivation for the World Wheel came from an experience in the mid 70's when my perception of ourselves and the world shifted, and the Unity of life stood revealed. The next few years were a search for a way to live within this web of life that connects all life. Specific ideas for the World Wheel came to me in a dream; I saw myself carving sculptures out of the living rock and involving people from many culture in a process of ritual in a giant circle around the world. The circle itself represents Unity in the sense that each spoke of the wheel has a quality that is unique, distinct from every other spoke of the wheel and yet it is from these differences that harmony arises, from these differences that the whole is created."

You can see more of Vijali's work on her website.