Artist turns melted guns into angels

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - Using melted guns and decommissioned missiles, Lin Evola transforms weapons into painted peace symbols.

"The weapons melted down says to humanity, 'We are the ones who choose,'" she says. 

The conceptual art project is titled the Peace Angels Project. It serves as a reminder of the worldwide violence epidemic. By turning weapons into angels, Evola is asking mankind to create a better world. 

"The real function of art is to reflect back to humanity--where we are, who we are," Evola says. "And in this case especially now, weapons are a big part of what's going on in our world."

The Peace Angels Project started in 1992. Evola had just moved to Los Angeles and was horrified to read about the high gun-violence rates. She decided to use her art to take a stand. 

With the help of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Evola obtained thousands of guns that had been taken off the streets and decommissioned nuclear stainless steel. One piece she made from those weapons will stand at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. It's set to be revealed next year.

The models Evola has made are each made up of about 25 weapons. She says her goal is to turn them into 64-foot monuments using 1 million weapons each. 

Los Angeles officials have given Evola permission to proceed with her plans. She hopes when that's done she can install a similar monument in New York. 

Ultimately, she'd like her work to be displayed in every major city worldwide, Evola says, not just as an image of unity, but also as an apology on behalf of humanity. 

"I really apologize for all of us, the human race, that it's taken us this much tragedy and pain to make a change," she says.