In the hustle and bustle of ¡Hola! (Hello) and ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?), a group of travellers from different parts of UK went on a Mexican adventure to explore the diverse culture of Mexico, diving straight into the turquoise waters of splendid Cancún!
In a heat of over 30 degrees, we went from a private tour on a Catamaran to the Isla Mujeres; from snorkelling to visiting the Cirque De Soleil VIP show; from the Chichén Itzá pyramids (one of the seven wonders of the world) to swimming in the Cenote; and from visiting the colonial city of Valladolid to finally a shopping tour in the heart of Playa de Carmen. Here, we found an extraordinary moment in which the science of the eye combined with magnificent digital features to form a creation of personal art. Whilst we enjoyed the street food in Mexico – the tacos, tamales, enchiladas, burritos, and the famous avocado-based Guacamole dip – we also had the opportunity to explore the art of our very own eyes too!
Visiting the newest addition to the Iris Galerie collections, the ‘Your Eye For Art’ studios located around the world, we stepped foot into their latest studio technology in the growing world of ‘eye art’. Luckily, we were able to get walk-in appointments and were welcomed by Miracle, who showed us the creation of the amazing charms and delights of purchasing our very own sparkling eye art pieces. Turning the iris into a masterpiece, Iris Galerie supports Art Explora, which encourages the sharing of culture in public engagement by renewing the dialogue between arts and audiences both on a national and international level.
Photos courtesy of Rahila Bashir and Iris Galerie.
The shooting of the iris and its optimisation only took a few minutes! We were able to do group portraits – duo, trio, quartet to quintet – in one single frame. It makes a beautiful home wall piece and leaves you dazzled to see the beauty of the iris in so many filters and frames!
Throughout history, the eye has held deep symbolic and artistic significance in cultures around the world. In ancient Egypt, the Eye of Horus symbolised protection and divine power. In classical art, eyes were beautifully rendered to convey emotion and realism, reflecting the growing interest in human anatomy and perspective during the Renaissance. Artists like da Vinci and Michelangelo studied the eye closely to master expression and gaze. In religious art, the “all-seeing eye” came to represent divine omniscience. By the 20th century, the eye evolved into a powerful surrealist motif, as seen in works by Salvador Dalí and René Magritte. In contemporary art, the eye remains a potent symbol, both personal and political, invoking themes of surveillance, self-awareness, and the act of seeing itself. Across time, it has remained a focal point, quite literally, in how artists explore the world and the human experience.
With such a rich history, and creative enterprises like Iris Galerie using technology to drive our aesthetic appreciation of the eye forward, our ‘window to the soul’ is flourishing more than ever!
If you would like to arrange a visit, please contact Miracle.
To find an Iris Galerie near you, simply visit the website: https://store.irisgalerie.com/galleries
Milagros Serrudo (Miracle), Manager at Iris Galerie, Playa del Carmen; Mexico.
Declaration of competing interests: None declared.
