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Peter Mars

Untitled

1988

Mixed media, acrylic paint, and handcrafted screen printing

40 × 52 cm

Unique

Location: Paris, France

https://www.artransfer.com/web/image/product.template/38244/image_1920?unique=6e0d15a

8,210 € 8210.0 EUR 8,210 €

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About the artwork

Comprising four distinct rectangular panels configured as a unified quadriptych, the composition centers on repeated serigraphed silhouettes of Marilyn Monroe rendered in high-contrast black ink over multicolored acrylic grounds. Each canvas employs a discrete chromatic palette—spanning vibrant pink, saturated orange, metallic gold, and cool lavender—layered beneath stenciled alphanumeric text and promotional fragments that reference mid-century commercial signage. The integration of hand-pulled silkscreen processes with opaque acrylic paint reflects the artist's early technical experiments following his tenure at the New Orleans Contemporary Arts Center. The serial repetition across the four supports echoes post-war commercial print traditions while introducing subtle variations in hue and texture that distinguish each individual panel.

Expert opinion

Executed in 1988, this early quadriptych captures an important developmental phase in the artist's engagement with mass-media iconography shortly after his relocation to the American South. The use of serial repetition directly references the foundational strategies of 1960s Pop Art while incorporating the weathered surfaces characteristic of urban vernacular culture. Within the broader market, early multi-panel works from this decade remain uncommon, securing interest from collectors focused on late-twentieth-century American print-based painting.

About the artist

Born in Portland, Oregon, Peter Mars studied chemistry at Reed College before relocating to New Orleans in the early 1980s. During his time in the French Quarter, he trained in printmaking at the Contemporary Arts Center silkscreen studio, establishing a lifelong engagement with serigraphy and mechanical reproduction techniques. He later established his permanent base in Chicago, where his practice matured within the intersecting discourses of Pop Art and Outsider Art. His output draws heavily from mid-century American ephemera, including vintage signage, comic books, product packaging, and mass-media imagery. By juxtaposing familiar icons with layered typography and distressed textures, the artist constructs a visual archive that comments on consumerism and cultural memory.

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