Peter Alexander

Peter Alexander was an American artist who was part of the Light and Space artistic movement in southern California in the 1960s. He is notable for his resin sculptures from the 1960s and 1970s.

After initially working as an architect, Alexander rose to prominence in the 1960s with translucent resin sculptures. He is credited as one of the key figures that galvanized the Light and Space movement onto the world stage, alongside his contemporaries Robert Irwin, Doug Wheeler, and Larry Bell. He did not receive the same recognition as them, however, partly because of the "varied nature" of his artistic endeavors. He also produced paintings, including a series that depicts luminous aerial views of the city lights stretching across the Los Angeles basin. He was commissioned to paint a large mural for the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

Alexander's art appears in the films Erin Brockovich, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and Shopgirl.

He was a longtime friend of Christopher Isherwood. A portrait of Alexander by Isherwood's longtime lover Don Bachardy has been displayed at the Laguna Art Museum.

In October 2011, the Craig Krull Gallery exhibited a survey of Alexander's work, including paintings and sculptures from 1970 to 2009 in conjunction with Pacific Standard Time. Alexander was exhibited in Pacific Standard Time museum shows as well, including "Civic Virtue: The Impact of the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery and the Watts Towers Arts Center", organized by the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, "Phenomenal: California Light and Space" at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, and "Pacific Standard Time: Crosscurrents in L.A. Paintings and Sculpture 1945-1970" at the J. Paul Getty Museum.

Text courtesy of Wikipedia, 2023