peter kuttner
Peter Kuttner graduated with his Bachelor’s of Fine Art from Ringling College of Art & Design in Sarasota, Florida. His work has been featured in Architectural Digest Magazine as well as in popular films and television shows including Two and a Half Men, Californication, and Nashville. Recently he has had two solo shows at Kelsey Michaels Fine Art in Laguna Beach, California. Other recent shows include Spectrum Miami, the Architectural Digest Home Design Show and the ArtExpo Show in New York. Presently, Peter’s work is on display in a number of museums as well as private, royal, and corporate collections worldwide. In 2016, he became part of the permanent collection of the International Museum of Collage in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Artist’s Statement
When I’m painting, I tend to yield to the spontaneous development of the artwork. I allow gravity and evaporation to become my allies in creating each piece. I enjoy being a mere observer in the organic processes that occur without human influence, both inside and outside of the studio. The ethereal quality of my work is created one thin layer at a time with great care and patience. The organic aesthetic that these dozens of layers create cannot be replicated by any hurried methods– they must be left to develop on their own.
The heart of my life and work is conservation. Apart from creating an aesthetic, I try to create each piece as conscientiously as possible. I try to create zero-waste art. This is most apparent in my Mixed Tape series in which I create works entirely with would-be byproducts from my other works. The layers of archival materials in the Mixed Tapes series can resemble sedimentary geological formations or a stack of magazines. Each layer of tape comes from a different painting, project, or point in time. It is the mixed history of these pieces that gives them the complexity reminiscent of the natural world.
In the Billboard series, I create time capsules that explore the duality of the calmness and chaos of living in the present world. I’m interested in using found objects, upcycled books, magazines, newsprint, and other print materials to assemble contemporary archives that ask the viewer to reflect on their own ephemeral footprint.
In my Cut-Out series, I use a process not unlike that of Matisse. The economy of design and the utilitarian simplicity therein allow for the creation of simple, archetypal pieces. I use familiar yet abstracted details to suspend the viewer in contemplation of the universality of imagery. Using negative shapes and emphasizing spacial relationships, I carefully consider scale and balance. Works in this series are meant to be lively, colorful, utopian, and uplifting. It is in these works where I feel most connected to my background in art, design, and illustration.
