By John Pint

May 27, 2011 marked the inauguration of a new mural by Jalisco, Mexico painter Jorge Monroy at the Infinity Funeral Home in Guadalajara. Conducting the ceremony was the director of the funeral home, Jorge Arturo González. After the ceremony, Jorge Monroy commented on his new work.

“Finding an appropriate theme for the lobby of a funeral home sent me on a long journey of soul searching,” he said. “I knew that people of all faiths would be walking in the door, probably grief-stricken and possibly depressed. And so, I wanted to find a theme that crosses the boundaries of all religions and might offer a ray of hope to every member of mankind. I began by thinking about the world’s temples, churches, mosques and synagogues and how all of them lead us to gaze upward and it seemed to me one symbol uniting all members of the human race is the symbol of light, the beauty of light shining in the darkness, the light from which we all came and to which we will all return. And then I happened to come across a marvelous photo of an ordinary match being lit, where the camera had captured all the subtle shades of color and the shapes of swirling gases which spring into existence when fire is born. So, you may see something of this in my mural, and perhaps a lot more.”

Using the talents so well displayed in the mural he painted for the lobby of the Guadalajara Chamber of Commerce, Monroy has filled the bottom fourth of his new work with representations of 18 different monuments which human beings have created over the millennia to encourage people to lift their eyes to the light. You will recognize Stonehenge, the pyramids of Egypt and Chichen Itza, the Cathedral of Chartres, Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, the Grand Mosque of Mecca, the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, Mont Saint-Michel in France and many others, each of them subtly blending

 ith

the next as only Jorge Monroy can do it ( See "Under the Wings of Mercury")  and, of course, all of them connected by softly glowing filaments to the nebulous, swirling Eternal Light at the top.
  

Anyone who goes to see this new mural at Infinity Funeral Home, should also visit the place’s five salas because each of them has at least one spectacular painting by Jorge Monroy, who has been commissioned to do a total of eight works for these rooms. Some of the themes you’ll see represented are The Four Seasons and The Universe. Needless to say, each of the already finished paintings is as full of meaning and inspiration as the Eternal Light mural. Be prepared to spend some time just sitting and looking. “You may be surprised what you’ll discover,” assures Monroy.

The new mural measures 3.8 by 6 meters, divided into four sections, and was done in acrylics. You can view it and the other paintings by Monroy anytime day or night and there is no charge. Infinity Funeral Home is located at General San Martín number 140 at the corner of Lopez Cotilla, two blocks west of Chapúltepec in Guadalajara’s Colonia Americana, TEL (33) 3630-3333. See their website  where you can view some of Jorge Monroy’s paintings by clicking on “Instalaciones.”

An acrylic painting by Jorge Monroy entitled The Universe, which can be seen in one of the parlors of the Funeral Home.