Peter Bentley
peter
peter-bentley.com
Peter Bentley is an artist who paints from life. Whether delineating the pyramidal gleams on a shiny tin can, or cutting out the negative space of sky around a tree, Peter delights in the everyday, the unseemly, and tries to capture the vitality of visual life on canvas in paint. His subjects and media vary widely, but all his works retain a strong sense of fascination with the world around him, be it sunny or grey. He loves the way forms are defined by light.
For his MA in Art History project Peter created a college course which looks at landscape drawings and paintings from life from 1600 to the present. The materials for the course include 150+ images and primary sources for each of nine focused artists. Interviews, biographies, letters and book dedications illustrate the theoretical interests behind the work of Jan de Bisschop, Claude Lorrain, John Constable, Camille Corot, Claude Monet, Winslow Homer, Edward Hopper and Antonio Lopez-Garcia.
Svetlana Alpers' book The Art of Describing provides an engaging look into the practice during 17th and 18th century Northern European Art. In the 'Golden Age' of Dutch art the phrase "naer het leven" ('from' or 'after the life') described paintings done from direct observation of landscapes, interiors, figures and objects. While at times these Dutch works intended to convey symbolically veiled and moralizing messages (such as a snuffed candle to signify the transitory nature of life), Alpers' argues that much of these artworks should be understood as the products of people enthralled with the everyday world and the task of describing it.
Likewise Peter's work is an attempt to revel in form, shape, composition, and light. He believes that the world is a place full of wonder intended for exploration, and that painting this wonder is a valuable artistic pursuit. To read more about Peter's philosophy see his 2004 MFA Thesis statement.
