Houska Gallery: Friday, 6 April 2018

Peter Manion
From La Fragua to Vermont: Works on Paper

Opening reception Friday April 6, 5-8 pm

The exhibit is on view April 6 – May 24, 2018

Before starting his residencies at La Fragua, Belalcazar, Spain and the Vermont Studio Center, Peter was working within a self-created box with specific boundaries of what his art could be and what it could do for him and the world as a whole. Peter felt that there was more he could be doing artistically, but it was just out of grasp.

Feeling undefined as an artist and needing a “flip of the switch” creatively, Peter knew getting away from the comfort of familiar surroundings and supportive friends and family was essential. These residencies proved to be an isolating time, leading to an emotional breakdown which allowed him to reemerge with a new artistic aim and purpose.

Though Spain and Vermont are very different geographically and culturally, Peters experiences in these places were very similar in what they provided －La Fragua opened his eyes to a new perspective in his work, while Vermont gave him validation in this new direction. It was in La Fragua that Peter started to experiment with his sculptures, leading to a major breakthrough and better understanding of his 2D work. These sculptures allowed him to reexamine his practice as a whole, creating a new pace and vocabulary from which to work.

These works on paper are, in a way, a spirited approach to cataloguing this artist journey; the realization of creative freedom - freedom from a system he had placed upon himself years before.

Houska Gallery
4728 McPherson Ave
St. Louis, MO 63108
314-496-1377
HOUSKA.COM