Colombian artist, Juan M. Baraya G., explores the beauty, harmony, and mystical through imagined worlds. The rich navy pigment is punctuated with marine blue, light-infused white, and glistening golden hues. With dynamic contrast, the oceanic flow seems to burst beyond the boundaries of the edge of the linen. 

Melding realism, impressionism, and surrealism, Baraya creates a pictorial language drawing upon classical mythology, historical accounts, and nature. The depth of the ocean, the untamed spirit of mythological figures meander in maritime waters while gyrating jellyfish jet above the ocean floor illuminating a contemporary primordial environment of fantasy and freedom. Baraya’s imagery of sunken artifacts that ceased navigation above the waves, now clings to the seafloor at the mercy of transformative forces of saltwater, shifting sand and the scrutiny of sea creatures. His aim is for his viewers to feel the power of place inhabited by enchanted and real undersea wonders. Sailing across the painted surface, a flood of memories grounded in history and new aquatic associations could spring forth.