The reborn of fallen leaves project
Shenzhen, China
2025, Junior, Interactive & Multimedia
Project Description: On a normal early autumn morning, I was wandering in the park while stepping on the ground-full fallen leaves. Sunlight filtered through the gaps between the leaves and shone on the ground. When I looked down, a cluster of mandalas on the ground caught my attention. The way sunlight fell on the mandala became my source of inspiration. Therefore, when making the mandala, I cut ginkgo leaves into the shape of sun rays, and used fallen leaves and dried flowers to piece together a “Sun Mandala”. The flowers on the periphery of the sun grew toward the light, making the withered natural fragments a testimony to the cycle of life. During my activity, I delivered a speech on the connection between people and nature. The speech shared my concepts and ideas, and introduced my work. After the speech, I led everyone to complete their own “Earth Mandalas”, and some people voluntarily stepped onto the stage to introduce their works. At the end of the activity, we took group photos of these unique mandalas, bringing this event in nature to a close.
Reflection
Reflection
As the speaker of the activity, when researching relevant materials, I truly felt our alienation from nature. Data shows that cities, which account for only 3% of the land, consume 75% of natural resources. The sound of falling leaves being crushed is drowned out by electronic noises, and we even regard natural fragments as "garbage". Don't these facts reflect our current alienation from and disregard for nature? Mandala is a symbol of "cosmic order" in Oriental philosophy, intertwined with psychological archetypes. When I pieced together a beautiful mandala with leaves and dried flowers, I truly understood why it makes withering a testimony to the cycle of life. In my "sun", broken leaves became rays of sunlight, and the flowers in the center grew toward this light. The way the audience carefully adjusted the angle of the leaves and pondered how to arrange a satisfying mandala was exactly how urban dwellers regained their perception of nature after years of city life. This is precisely why I chose this theme for the activity. I hope that after participating, people can approach nature in their own ways—whether taking more walks in the park on weekends or paying closer attention to the current state of the natural ecosystem. These are extremely simple yet crucial steps for modern people to connect with and understand nature. May we break down the barrier between cities and nature, reclaim our connection with the land in daily life, and make "approaching nature" a conscious part of our lives.