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Peter Hughes
Peter Hughes, Meeting at Monte Lupo 2008,
Oil on Board 28 x 78cm.
For the third consecutive year, 27 year old Queensland-based artist Peter Hughes has captured the attention of the AART.BOXX creative committee with his distinctive work. Over the three years since AART.BOXX began, Hughes has built upon and expanded his body of work around instantly recognizable characters and a highly unique drawing style.
When Hughes first commenced his work experience at the Brisbane studio, Monte Lupo Arts, the variety of rich colour that he was exposed to inspired his imagination. As his mother reveals, "Peter has a phenomenal memory for colour. When he paints ceramics at work he will remember the distinct colour of the fired up glaze".
Despite its importance to his work, Hughes didn't always take to the use of colour. In his youth he often drew caricatures in only pen and pencil, an approach which he self developed. Colourful, humorous and cartoon-like, Hughes work is reminiscent of the work of Chris O'Doherty (or Reg Mombassa as he is otherwise known) and, as with O'Doherty, Hughes' sense of humour and observant nature is clearly communicated.
Hughes likes to paint people in situations he reads about in newspaper articles or on websites he comes across on the internet. His subject matter ranges from dramatic events to simple, everyday occurrences, such as his "mum on the telephone ordering pizza". No matter what the situation may be, Hughes constantly depicts people in his work. He derives a great sense of satisfaction from doing so because it is a strong form of communication for him. An important aspect of his practice is being able to show his work and describe the subject matter to others.
Written by
Lia Unthank
AART.BOXX 2009
Creative Committee
