Peter Halley, born in 1953 in New York City, has established himself as a significant figure in contemporary art. After earning a BA from Yale University and an MFA from the University of New Orleans in 1978, Halley returned to New York City in the early 1980s. The city's intricate urban grid profoundly influenced him, inspiring his creation of geometric paintings featuring "prisons" and "cells" that reflect the increasing geometricization of social spaces in modern society.
© Roxanne Lowit, 2017
Reflecting on his return to New York, Halley states, "When I moved back to New York in the 80s, I had a renewed interest in existentialist writers like Camus and Sartre, and work that had an existentialist gloom like that of Philip Guston." This period marked a shift in his perception of isolation and connectivity. "Very quickly I became interested in the idea that even though I felt physically isolated by the social architecture, I was in fact connected to the rest of the world through technological pathways such as the telephone, television, and electric light."
His encounter with Foucault's "Discipline and Punish" was transformative. "I was influenced by his ideas about how sources of power in our society construct and control space," he says. Baudrillard's insights into the fluidity of signs further deepened Halley's exploration of mediated experiences. "His writings created a linguistic revolution by proposing that each signifier leads to another signifier, leading to a hermetic, mediated experience of the world."
The 1980s were a pivotal decade for Halley, during which he solidified his singular visual language. This period saw the creation of 188 paintings, with 36 now part of public collections globally. Halley emerged as a leading figure among the neo-conceptualist artists of New York's East Village, alongside contemporaries like Jeff Koons, Haim Steinbach, and Ashley Bickerton. This group, referred to as ‘neo-geo’ or neo-conceptualist artists, was characterized by Halley’s unique approach: "I developed my own Modernist flat vocabulary of generalized forms called cells and prisons connected through abstract lines called conduits," he explains. These symbols transformed the idealized square into a metaphor for isolation and incarceration.
Halley's creative process is deeply intuitive, reflecting his philosophical inquiries and personal narrative. "As early as 1991, I settled on a very reductive vocabulary of symbols and icons along with a very distinctive set of materials including Day-Glo paint and Roll-a-Tex," he notes. The use of fluorescent paint and Roll-a-Tex texture material became defining characteristics of his work. "I was attracted to fluorescent paint because of its anti-natural qualities—it represents a technological light more than a natural light. Roll-a-Tex allowed the square to look more like a physical boundary and because it was a fake material, not real stucco, but a manufactured material."
© Peter Halley
© Peter Halley
The advent of digital tools, particularly Adobe Illustrator, revolutionized Halley's approach. "Since 1993 I have been drawing on the computer, which changed my work, because I was no longer constrained by the arithmetic rigidity of graph-paper proportions," he says. This digital manipulation offered new compositional freedoms, enhancing his exploration of geometric forms.
Halley’s work critically engages with the implications of digital technology on societal structures. "My usual joke is that I see my work as addressing the digital world 1.0—the basic spatial layout of the internet and computer," he muses. Unlike younger artists who focus on the psychological impacts of social media, Halley remains fascinated by the spatial aspects of digital technology. "I’m interested in how screens are filtering social interactions, how connections are controlled by corporations and tech companies, how the internet dictates how we communicate along its technological parameters."
A recent exhibition, 'Black Light,' showcased Halley's innovative use of lighting to highlight his vibrant neon colors. He explains, "The title for this exhibition 'Black Light' refers to the introduction of the use of black in my paintings on a larger scale than ever before. The robust use of black emphasizes the Day-Glo cells and prisons, which playfully jump out from the canvas in a mock-threatening way."
Looking ahead, Halley continues to push boundaries with upcoming projects. An exhibition at the NSU Art Museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, will explore the concept of mirrored symmetry. "I split the exhibition space in half to create two reflected rooms that are opposite yet identical, inspired by the reflecting behavior of subatomic particles," he reveals. This innovative setup promises an immersive experience, merging scientific inspiration with artistic exploration.
In recent years, Halley has been the subject of major exhibitions at the Musée d'art moderne Grand-Duc Jean, Luxembourg (2023); Dallas Contemporary (2021); Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt (2016); Musée d’Art Moderne Saint-Etienne Métropole (2014);His work is held in numerous public collections including the Museum of Modern Art, New York; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; the Tate Modern, London; and Centre Pompidou, Paris. His unique blend of geometric abstraction, technological critique, and philosophical inquiry continues to influence and inspire the art world.
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