paintings

A faceless woman meditates as she sits on an open book. Working with the linoleum block print technique, Marina Pallares explores her global vision for world peace. The artist explains that the butterfly alighting on the corner of the book symbolizes the transformation of a being who dragged herself along the ground, but transforms into a winged creature that will take flight. Gentle doves are released from her bowed head.

"This print arose from my vision of world peace," the Mexican artist comments. "It's very similar to my ideas about ecology. Everything begins with the individual person with a global vision. That is, when we find our own inner peace, it's inevitable that we'll project it to everyone around us.

"Meditation is one of the simplest ways to gain access to our inner being. It gives us a sense of union with everything and helps us remain in the present. Meditation and education make us more conscious.

"Peace begins in oneself, on the basis of self-knowledge, self-love and education, making ourselves one hundred percent responsible for our own lives."

Titled "La paz comienza por casa" in Spanish.

Mother nature begins with the tree of life in this World Peace Project painting by India's Bharti Dayal. As Mother Nature sits cross-legged, resembling a heart, she extends her limbs upwards, branching out into a full-grown tree with pink leaves and lotus flower motifs.

The artist explains that the unification of the female form and the tree suggests that femininity is in its essence peaceful. Just as Hinduism advocates the continuous growth of oneself and the pursuit of inner peace, 'Feminine Tree' depicts the figurative source of peace as the self, independent of the surrounding world.

The artist uses natural vegetable colours to depict this symbolic scene of Mother Nature existing within an empty gray domain, sprouting with vibrant pink, directing one's attention to the peaceful heights reached in the feminine universe.

Dayal carefully arranges her composition to tell the story of the tree of life, employing the classic Madhubani painting style. "Madhubani paintings are in fact a simplistic manifestation of the philosophical heights achieved by Indian civilization for the universal power of love, longing and peace -- the quest of all beings," Dayal says.

"This painting is inspired by the flowers that are cultivated near my village. They remind me of how beautiful my Guatemala is," confides Juan Henry Mendez. He refers to the exotic beauty of calla lilies and birds of paradise, which he captures with artistic finesse as he paints with oils and acrylics.

Titled "Cartuchos" in Spanish.