The
paintings of this exhibit by Erik Peterson were made between the years of 2008
and 2012 while living and working in Seattle. Two large canvases dominate
the exhibit. Both are in oil paints and depict narrative scenes of
unnerving, layered, and ambiguous beauty. Strong composition and
structure ground the viewer, while fluid painterly marks and color relations
create a highly dynamic surface. Imagery of architecture and young girls
are present in both.
"Forgive
Me”, the earlier of the two, utilizes the composition found in the Van Eyck
bothers’ painting from the 15th century referred to as "Adoration of
the Lamb”. Peterson’s rendition of it has been blown up in size, subject,
and content. The foreground is populated by girls in dresses and yellow
wings running, playing, fighting amongst piles of bricks rendered as if hallucinated
more than actual bricks. The center of the canvas is occupied by Van
Eyck’s lamb shadowed by a looming helicopter. The background contains
deteriorating buildings and wind turbines with a dark sky replacing Van Eyck’s
optimistic and heavenly blue one. Certainly there is meaning in this but
it is not made evident.
"Responsibility
and Restraint” is a vertically oriented canvas whirling with color, high
contrasts, and evidence of a circus carousel. A linear depiction of a
girl, or maybe the spirit of one, seems to grasp at a guard rail, her dress in
movement with the carousel, while her gaze is steady and patient.
Smaller
paintings from the same time period will also be on display.
