a selman project

It’s no secret that every nation has its own unique culture, demographics, and associated social issues. Unfortunately, sometimes our perception of many countries is shaped most by the negative issues which bubble up in the media. Worse still, is that many countries go both unheard of and unheard by the larger world.

Thankfully, every nation equally produces individuals who devote and sacrifice themselves to the principles of peace, freedom, and equality. The Peace Post project began as a means to shine a light on individuals from around the globe who are champions of peace.

As a starting point, we determined that every sovereign nation should be represented in the project with a few key disputed states entered at our discretion. As a referential guide for each illustration, we profiled each country with a keen eye on the progression of traditional and contemporary visual styles associated with the art and culture.

In choosing which individual to profile for each country, we first referenced Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, notable omissions, and various other international peace awards looking for potential candidates. In several cases when a nation was not represented by a winner of a major peace award, we used our own research to find an individual who represented associated ideals and actions of peace advocacy.

We elected to represent the chosen individuals as a series of stamps for several reasons. Stamps have a long history of commemorating important people and events. Stamps are collectible and shareable. Perhaps most importantly, stamps represent a vehicle of correspondence and dialogue.

Our goal was to learn more about these countries, the positive people there, and share their stories with you.

For more information please contact:
chris@selmandesign.com
peacepost on instagram:
@projectpeacepost
Copyright and disclaimer
The content of this web site contains information, photographs, and media intended solely for educational purposes.

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Ahmed Mansoor

  • United Arab Emirates
  • Human Rights

Ahmed Mansoor is an engineer and member of the Human Rights Watch organization. He was one of the “UAE Five” who were arrested in 2011 for speaking out in opposition to the UAE government. Mansoor in particular was punished for signing a pro-democracy petition. The “UAE Five” eventually received a pardon after serving partial sentences although Mansoor’s passport was revoked and he cannot freely leave the UAE. Since his release, Mansoor has continued to speak out against human rights abuses in his country and in 2015 he was selected as the Laureate for the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.

United Arab Emirates

  • Population
    10,469,521 (93rd)
  • Capital
    
Abu Dhabi
  • GDP (PPP)
    
$67,616 per capita
  • December 2, 1971
  • Total Area
    83,600 km2 (116th)
  • Demonym
    Emirati, Emirian, Emiri
  • Government
    Constitutional Monarchy; Federation of 7 Hereditary Monarchies

Artwork

The art of the United Arab Emirates is a diverse mix of influences drawing from traditional Arab cultures along with influences from Iran, India, Pakistan, and East Africa. This portrait of Ahmed Mansoor takes its color scheme from the Emirati flag, and is constructed using the flowing calligraphic lines characteristic of aniconic artwork.

  • Illustration by
    Albert Chang