Dan Peterman

Chicago-based artist Dan Peterman speaks about his environmentally concerned installations, objects, and community projects at this talk presented by Ohio State's Department of Art. Since the 1980s artist Dan Peterman has used his art to comment on the waste materials created, circulated, and cast off by contemporary consumer culture. He interacts with communities directly on issues of recycling, waste, and sustainability by making art that itself recycles and repurposes discarded goods. Peterman's projects have included a public shelter made from a 1960's Volkswagen bus covered in compost and cooking utensils made from melted plastic bags used in Chicago's "blue bag" recycling system. A materials expert, he's fabricated synthetic gypsum drywall that incorporates and neutralizes sulphur coal emissions. The drywall was given to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago for display and eventual use in a museum building.

Peterman is also the founder of Experimental Station, a nonprofit organization based on Chicago's South Side that serves as an incubator for arts, culture, and community initiatives. The center's rehabbed building and grounds have housed the artist's studio, office space, a community garden, a Volkwagen repair garage, and a cooperative bicycle shop (a favorite with local teens). Peterman's work has been featured in solo exhibitions at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (2004), Kunstverein Hannover (2001), Kunsthalle Basel (1998), and Andrea Rosen Gallery, New York (1996), and in group exhibitions worldwide. Peterman holds an MFA from the University of Chicago and teaches at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

Presented by Ohio State’s Department of Art.