Peter Zelle
Sculptor Peter Zelle has worked with glass, clay and steel for 30 years. Explaining the early inspiration for his work, he recalls the wisdom of one of his teachers who suggested, “Living is the greatest art of all, and out of that comes the art product.” At 15, he witnessed the example of a creative life by observing his father’s great uncle, the sculptor/painter Peter Krasnow in his home and studio, then in his 90’s and still making new works and living creatively. Zelle had just begun working with clay, and at that point, he chose the direction for his own life.
After studying with Dale Chihuly at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Zelle earned a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design. An apprenticeship with noted glass sculptor Howard Ben Tre prepared him for establishing Zelle Glass Studio in Minneapolis in 1992. Zelle’s list of public and private installations is lengthy, as is his list of commissioned works and gallery exhibitions across the country.
