BRANDON — A reception will be held for the “Peace on Earth” exhibit at the Compass Music and Arts Center on Friday, Dec. 9 from 3 to 7 p.m. The exhibit arose from an open call to artists to express their ideas and ideals of “Peace on Earth.”
The resulting compilation is a plea for global peace at a time when there is so much anger and division. A prime example is that of B. Amore’s “Peace, Peace, Please Peace.” It shows many faces from all over the world. Amore’s hope is that viewers will feel more connected when they look at the faces, as if they are “part of a larger whole, one human family.” “The piece is a plea for Peace,” says Amore.
Compass asks visitors to step out of the hustle and bustle of life and take time to reflect and find a sense of calmness. When walking the exhibit, guests will not only have their visual senses engaged, but also their auditory senses, as they listen to soothing, contemplative, and tranquil music by Divine Art Records.
From young to old, the exhibit celebrates artists who have a strong unified message calling for peace and visitors even get a chance to participate in that. With Ruth Hamilton’s “Peace Cabinet,” visitors are asked to write their own message or prayer for peace, which will then be ceremoniously burned at the end of the exhibit. Hamilton says she’s always loved ritual, no matter the tradition or the religion. “Rituals have been done for millennia,” she explains. “I think perhaps they help us feel a part of things beyond our control and give us moments of pause, endeavoring to connect in a healing and peaceful way with our human community.”
A quote by Bishop Desmond Tutu in another submission by B. Amore states,
“My humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up in yours. We belong in the same bundle of life. We say a person is a person. It is not, ‘I think therefore I am.’ It says, rather, I am a human being because I belong, I participate, I share.”
With this statement, Amore again makes a clear message that “reminding ourselves of this essential consciousness may offer a path to peace in our complex world.”
When life is in a swirl, you need a sense of inner peace to rationalize what is happening around you in order to find calmness. For some, meditation is an avenue to achieve this, as it “clears one’s mind, opens the heart and fills the inner being with love, compassion and a desire to live a non-threatening, peaceful existence,” this from Sandy Mayo’s “Three Meditations.”
Participating artists include: B. Amore, Robert Black, Fran Bull, Robin Callahan, Joan Curtis, Dan Gilman, Ruth Hamilton, Louise Kenney, Denise Letendre Bach, Mary Fran Lloyd, Sandy Mayo, Judith Reilly, Alice Sciore, Jessica Scriver, Lowell Snowdon Klock, Christopher Sommer, Stephanie Whitney-Payne, and students from the Leicester Central School and Neshobe Elementary School.
A complementary exhibit of paintings by Stephanie Stouffer also features key works related to the theme of “Peace on Earth.” The message within the designs of Compass’s fall exhibit “The Creative World of Stephanie Stouffer” proved to be a catalyst for the message in the new main exhibit. Stouffer’s “Peace on Earth” illustrations demonstrate her unique whimsical style whilst making a strong statement. Visitors will also have a chance to enjoy her breadth of work and a unique opportunity to experience and purchase her holiday illustrations. 
The exhibits run through Jan. 7, 2017.
The Compass Music and Arts Center is located in Park Village at 333 Jones Drive, Brandon VT, 05733 (Park Village used to be the Brandon Training School, located 1.5 miles north of downtown Brandon off Arnold District Rd.).