Pedro Reyes Turns Guns Into Functioning Musical Instruments

Violence has been running rampant in Northern Mexico throughout the last six years.

Artist Pedro Reyes is doing his best to reverse this trend by sculpting confiscated weapons into functioning musical instruments.

Image Courtesy of Lisson Gallery, click to see more on Pedro Reyes’ Art and Philosophy.

Why  Turn Guns Into Instruments?

In an email to the Associated Press, Pedro said, “The music expelled the demons [the guns] held, as well as being a requiem for lives lost.”

At Lucid Practice, we believe in using creativity to counteract violence. We believe in changing negative societal norms — we’re featuring Pedro today because his project is a testament to these virtues.

The guns that Reyes used came from the Mexican Army who had confiscated the weapons from Ciudad Juárez, a violent city just south of Texas (see map below) with a population of over one million people. It is believed that Ciudad Juárez reached a murder rate of 300 per month at the peak of recent violence.

An Act of Protest?

With drug cartels and frequent violence, protests in Juarez’ surrounding cities has been common. However, Reyes’ work transcends protests as he says, “[My work] is not just a protest, but a proposal…. This project has a pacifist intent.”

Image Courtesy of Lisson Gallery, click to see more on Pedro Reyes’ Art and Philosophy.

How We Can Learn from Pedro Reyes

At Lucid Practice, we admire Reyes for his ability to use creativity, music, and love to combat suffering and bring the concept of peace to a devastated region. Instead of merely defining a problem, Reyes is using art to express a completely contrarian perspective to what the region has become accustomed to. As Reyes says, “This exercise of transformation we see with the guns, is what we would like to see in society.”

Mr. Reyes is correct, everywhere we see hate, let’s turn it into love.

What are your thoughts about turning weapons into instruments?