sculptures of hands

In Balinese culture, Tri Kaya Parisudha is a philosophy that promotes positive thoughts, words and deeds, composed by three purified actions known as Manacika, Wacika and Kayika. Artisans from the Subrata Family in Indonesia carve and paint by hand a compelling suar wood sculpture of a man practicing Manacika and looking to achieve harmony and peace in life by the power of positive thinking.

"Positive thinking helps people do right and speak the truth. Positive and right thinking are the way to a harmonious life. With right and positive thinking, our behavior will be good and positive, including with our words. If all of creation thinks positively and does right, the world will be peaceful and not have more war, violence, or conflict, and so we will all prosper," say the artisans.

"Agorkoli is a peaceful Togolese god that led the Ewe people from Togo to Ghana where they reside now," says artisan Emmanuel Austin Ankude of his original sculpture. He works in native sese wood to hand-carve the intriguing statuette.

Give peace a chance with this breathtaking suar wood sculpture by Balinese artisan Nyoman Sudiana. "To achieve peace, there are several things that must be created, namely the availability of basic human needs which consist of clothing, food, and shelter. In the world, there is also a harmonious relationship that must be preserved starting from ourselves, namely humans with God, humans with fellow creatures created by God, and humans with the universe's environment. If it has been created in us, we will feel that peace, and our lives will feel more comfortable and peaceful," says the artist.

In this statue, each of these pillars of peace has the following meaning:

• The doves are a symbol of purity and hope, tenderness of devotion. Doves are also associated with the third chakra, which is connected to purpose, creativity, self-expression, and ego.
• The globe is a symbol of the earth itself where we as God's creatures are the inhabitants of the world.3. The two hands symbolize human efforts to care for and maintain a strong life hand in hand to create peace for all mankind and the rest of nature.
• The two pillars symbolize justice and prosperity in which every human being must be able to meet the needs of clothing, food, and shelter for a comfortable life in the world.
• The nuclear disarmament motif symbolizes the Anti-War Movement design by Gerald Holtom on February 21, 1958. This symbol is a combination of semaphore signals for the letters N and D which stand for nuclear disarmament.
• Two open fingers symbolize victory in the struggle.

George Obeng designed this wonderful original sculpture with world peace in mind. Carved by hand from ebony wood, the sculpture depicts two women of different races holding up a clay pot that represents the fragility of life on Earth. "By this carving, I am appealing to the world that we are not the only creatures in the world," says the artist. "Plants and trees, insects, reptiles and fishes both in the sea and rivers, birds and all mammals are interested in enjoying life in the world. The human race is just a small fraction of all creatures, so why are we not interested in making peace our focus and object in the world, to enable all creatures to enjoy life to the fullest. Anytime there is earthly destruction, we only account for human losses, forgetting that other creatures including trees may also get damaged. This carving is sounding a wake-up call to the world leaders and united nations to wake up for the human race now. Humans are full of selfishness, cruelty and greed; these can cause the world to break into pieces. All the world leaders have a responsibility in the matter. The world is as fragile as a clay pot so therefore whatever we do let's do it in peace."

"I see a lack of compassion between fellow beings these days and few people who bring about peace in society. The process to make peace for the common good in society and the world starts with the self, doing small things such as meditating and practicing mindfulness to solve problems for the sake of both peace and the world," master artisan Wayan Rendah says.

"My hope is that everyone can respect one other and respect the differences that exist to avoid hostility and injustice in life and society.

"Buddha's teachings promote inner peace and unity for achieving enlightenment, and Buddha has motivated many to transform their life choices over thousands of years, spanning periods of chaos and stability."

The Buddhist concept of a peaceful life inspires this hand-carved hibiscus wood sculpture depicting the serene face of Buddha, blessing all those within his presence. At the centre of a world suspended in equilibrium, Buddha seeks discipline and selflessness among the inhabitants of the Earth.

Throughout history, doves have inspired messages of peace and unity. Balinese artisan Made Wirata also draws inspiration from these winged friends to hand-carve a suar wood sculpture of two loving doves atop a globe.

""Where there is love, there will be love. Where there is love, there will be a feeling of peace, both within yourself, your family, and society in the world," says the artisan. "I hope the world will always be at peace. When the world experiences peace, a harmonious world will be created, and the economy will be improving, as part of a peaceful world.

"If we look at the character of doves, we know why they were chosen as a symbol of peace," the artisan continues. "Doves do not like to kill when looking for food, and do not like to fight when attacked by predators.

"Now, in the world, there is so much strife between humans, so much murder, greed, and injustice. Hopefully, humans can imitate the character of the dove sharing feelings of affection, tenderness, and love. This is how the world will become peaceful and serene."

Holding hands, three people of different shapes and sizes form a circle. Joseph Boateng captures their gestures in a sculpture of minimalist style and fluid line as he works in African sese wood. The artisan names this image Nkabom, which means "togetherness" in the Twi language of Ghana's Akan people. "This concept is to bring unity to the people of the world. Let's love each other!" he says.

Much respected by the Senufo from northern Cote d'Ivoire, the graceful kalaho stands as a symbol of peace if it is seen, for these shy birds avoid humans. Salihu Ibrahim carves the kalaho from sese wood, adding details in cream to the beautiful sculpture.