From the New York Times:
"Peter J. Ketchum knows how to get the viewer's
attention. Shown widely around the country, his
pictures commingle colors, people, situations,
commentary and mediums in a manner that is
provocative, funny and to the point. Attempts to
pigeonhole the work as Pop, folk, cartoon, mixed
media, collage, anthropomorphic, or merely strange
tend to fall short of the mark!"
Peter J. Ketchum received a degree in fine arts from Colby College,
did additional study at the School for Visual Arts in NYC, and studied
filmaking at NYU. He also studied privately with George Baer.
The Brooklyn based artist’s work is in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Institute,
The Norfolk History Museum, Colby, and the (late great) Guggenheim Downtown. His work has been
shown at The Brooklyn Museum, The Bushnell, The Springfield Museum of Fine Art, The Discovery Museum
(2 person show), and the Connecticut Sports Museum.
Five works were included in “35 Artists of North
America,” curated by Thomas Krens, the former head of the
Guggenheim. The artist has shown in solo and group shows in
Boston and NYC, including Exit Art, Lumina, MetroPictures, SOHO 20, HERE,
the Williamsburg (Brooklyn) Art Center, ArtWell, Bachelier/Cardonsky
and the Charter Oak Cultural Center.
Curators and/or gallery owners who have shown his work
include Ethan and Ivan Karp (OK Harris, NYC), Susan Dunne
(Pace NYC), John Klein (The Aldrich Museum) and Matthew
Druitt (The Guggenheim, NYC) and Thomas Krens (ex The
Guggenheim).