Butler Art Musuem Acquires Works by Realist Peter Maier
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- The Butler Institute of American Art has acquired two "monumental works" by photo-realist painter Peter Maier, reports Louis A. Zona, its executive director and chief curator.
The paintings are titled “Horse-Power (Ben)” and “Madison Avenue at Speed.” “Horse-Power (Ben)” is a 9 x 11.5 foot masterwork first exhibited at the Butler in September 2013.
The portrait of the Budweiser Clydesdale, which weighs 1,000 pounds, was painted with automotive paint on fabricated black aluminum panel. It was completed in 2011 and has been on display at the museum since June. “Madison Avenue at Speed” is on view in the Butler’s Donnell Sports Gallery and depicts Jeff Gordon’s racing car in its actual size.
The race car painting was given to The Butler by the artist as part of a purchase agreement for The Butler to acquire the Clydesdale painting, according to published reporters. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Peter Maier is one of the greatest living realist painters using modern day technology," says Zona. "He has extended the traditions of realist masters Vermeer and Rembrandt, and the American legends Winslow Homer, Thomas Eakins and Edward Hopper. His work stops us in our tracks, engaging the viewer in wonder and awe. We are honored to have acquired these two monumental works.”
Maier, born in 1945 in Brooklyn, N.Y., is the son of immigrants. He grew up in a multi-ethnic environment. From his earliest memories, art was his driving passion. At age 18, “Pete” was selected to work on the sculpture for the 1964 New York World’s Fair. After serving in Vietnam, Maier went to work for General Motors. His imprint can be found on a number of the automaker's classic designs, Zona says. During these years, he rose to the level of senior designer, yet his passion for creating art drove him to the fine-art world. With his maverick approach, he forged a new pathway in realist painting.
"Away from the mainstream of the art world, in a studio in rural Buck Hill Falls, Pa., Maier has quietly worked at revolutionizing American Realism," Zona notes. "He combines innate artistic genius with the development of a self–generated, groundbreaking technique that blurs realism with reality, making his larger-than-life paintings startling in their presence and their vision."
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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