NYAB Event - Lamar Peterson “Weekend Gardener”

Lamar Peterson “Weekend Gardener”

Fredericks & Freiser Gallery

This event has ended.

Fredericks & Freiser presents an exhibition of new paintings by Lamar Peterson. Peterson dissects constructs of the American dream as he comments on domesticity, masculinity, representations of blackness, and class anxieties. Having shown for more than a decade, Peterson is now exploring new medium as he increases the scale of his works and moves from acrylic to oil. His evolving practice mimics the narrative of his pieces as he captures movement and transformation, change and balance.

Sourcing imagery from popular culture, fairytales, canonical art history, comic books, and science fiction, Peterson’s vision is both biting and playful. He extends us an invitation to enter his surreal and oddly familiar world where traditional binaries are conflated: moments of happiness boast morose twists, comfortable domestic scenes are chaotically messy, safety and fear coexist. Within several of his canvases, there is a sphere containing the action of the work. These clearly defined circles are reminiscent of a crystal ball offering insight into Peterson’s sublime world, and perhaps indicating a future or alter-reality. Creating what the artist calls a “purposeful incongruity,” the scenes contained in the circle are dizzying, with crazed skies and bright florae, while just outside exists still tranquility. Using humor as a tool of elucidation, Peterson exposes our complexities.

About the Artist
Lamar Peterson (born 1974 in St. Petersburg, Florida) received his MFA from Rhode Island School of Design in 2001. He has had previous solo exhibitions at The Studio Museum of Harlem, New York; Rochester Arts Center, Minnesota; Orlando Museum of Art, Florida; University Art Museum at SUNY, Albany; Deitch Projects, New York; and Franklin Art Works, Minneapolis, MN. He has exhibited in numerous group shows including the Fifth International SITE Santa Fe Biennial 2004, Santa Fe, NM; The Drawing Center, New York, NY; The Kemper Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO; and the Katonah Museum of Art, Katonah, NY. Peterson is Assistant Professor of Drawing & Painting at the University of Minnesota. This is his fifth solo exhibition with Fredericks & Freiser.