"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse"  54" x  72"   Detail Oil on Canvas by John WorldPeace November 1, 2002 The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse A partial interpretation from the artist's transient perspective This painting is called the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and it is a reference to the scriptures in the book of Revelations in the Christian Bible. The four horses are red, white, black, and yellow.  They are represented by four knight chess pieces over the canvas.   In the center of the canvas, there is a golden circle which represents the Infinite God which has no beginning and no end.  The singularity of it speaks to the oneness of all things.  From the Infinite Potential, or God, all things manifest and back into the Infinite Potential all things disintegrate in time.   Everything in this world manifests from that oneness and everything eventually disintegrates back into it.  One of the reasons why we do not have peace on the planet or anywhere else in the universe is because of the constant change that permeates all things.  Nothing remains the same.  Therefore, there is a constant readjustment and this creates ongoing disharmony and chaos.  The question is how does the world society deal with that constant change in the universe; in the human society? You will notice that out of the infinite circle, which is gold and therefore represents that which is very long lasting,  is a straight line to each of the four horsemen.  You will also notice that the straight lines form a symbolic cross.  The four chess pieces do make the sign of the cross and out of the central circle there is a small golden ray touching upon each horse.   Then from each horse there are five rays symbolizing the number of man.  Symbolically there are two hands, two feet, and one head which number five; the five pointed star is also a representation of man.   Each of the four horses brings something different in the end times.  The white, red, yellow, black horses impose destruction on humanity.  The Bible says that these four horsemen will have the ability to affect one-fourth of the world's population. If you look closely at the painting you will see that there are red dots that correspond to the red horse, white dots to the white horse, black dots to the black horse, and yellow dots to the yellow horse.  You will also notice that all of the dots are on the gray people.  This means that they will be turned to ash.  They will be the ones who will die as a result of these four horsemen of the Apocalypse as they are let loose in the end times. The various colors of the people represent all the nations of the world, all of the races of the world, all religions of the world, and both sexes.  The helmeted looking figures are female.  The round headed figures are the males. You will also notice in the painting that the people closer to the golden circle' are lighter or bleached out.  The ones that are closer to the light are living in a transparent reality which permeates all things that exist in the universe. Again in this painting you see, as in many of my paintings, repetition.  In other paintings, there are various shapes and forms, things, concepts, etc which are repeated.  This is the nature of the universe.  There is this constant flowing, this constant sowing and reaping.  The constant birthing of new human beings and the constant death of older human beings.  It is an ongoing thing and it has to do with every living thing on this planet from ants and termites to elephants and birds.  Everything in the universe is repetitive including the planets and stars.  They manifest throughout the universe.   So this repetition is an important part of a lot of my paintings because it shows this constant churning of the universe.  This constant coming ashore of waves and new life and pulling back into the ocean that which is dead. The painting is timely because right now George Bush is considering invading Iraq to rape and pillage those people for their oil.  He intends to leave that country as destitute as he left Afghanistan where over a half of a million people are starving.  The AIDS plague is taking over Africa and has a significant foot hold in a highly populated China and India.  War is certainly coming.  And Bush certainly represents the first horsemen of the apocalypse who is conquering for the sake of conquering.  In the wake of conquering for the sake of conquering is the removal of peace from the earth.   George Bush is the world's premier warmonger and the greatest enemy to peace that exists on the planet. There is famine on the earth.  The economy is suffering because of George Bush's insistence on war.  Consequently there will be people dying due to famine which is a product of both global warming and also AIDS.  You also have George Bush and his administration refusing to allow the relaxing of patents on drugs for pandemics such as TB, AIDS, and malaria.  Therefore, through George there is not only famine but also starvation due to global warming and death due to AIDS, TB, and malaria.  There will also be death due to war.  It is probable that over 100,000 people were killed in Afghanistan as Bush rolled into that land to avenge 3,000 American deaths. The apocalypse is very real.  It is going on right now.  It has not touched every corner of the earth but that is not what the Bible prophesized.  It will only touch one-fourth of the earth.   The Apocalypse is upon us and the problem is that the most Christian nation in the world, the nation that is committed, theoretically, to truth, justice, and equality for all, is in fact the cause of the vast majority of the worlds ills. John WorldPeace November 22, 2002 Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say, as with a voice of thunder, "Come!"  And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and it rider had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.  When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, "Come!"  And out came another horse, bright red; its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that men should slay one another; and he was given a great sword.  When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!" And I saw, and behold,  black horse, and its rider had a balance in his hand; and I heard what seemed to be a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, "A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; but do not harm oil and wine!"  When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, "Come!" And I saw, and behold, a pale horse, and its rider's name was Death, and Hell followed him; and they were given power over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.  Revelation 6: 1-8.