Mary Ann Peters

MARY ANN PETERS is a multi-disciplined artist who makes socially and conceptually responsive work tied to the Middle East. Using the unique perspective of a second generation Arab American, she employs a distanced but personal filter to understand, interpret and highlight dismissed or undermined diaspora narratives. Her work is research driven and employs painting, drawing, sculpture and installation. She has been a practicing artist and an artist activist for four decades.

“I work from the premise that images are never neutral and that they sustain layered meaning from the inception of an idea to the completed piece. Historical narratives, architecture, science, personal heritage, politics and questions of perception have all played a part in my thinking over the years. I look for seemingly disparate elements that can coalesce and redefine a topic. I have traveled extensively, most frequently in non-Western cultures. Traveling has informed my understanding of the global roots of aesthetics. It consistently defines for me those social practices that provide outlines for cultural inquiry, including which ethical questions should be considered or supported. In the end I work to the afterimage of the viewer and the potential discourse that might ensue. The kiss of death for any artist is the work that no one can remember.”

Portrait photo from an interview with Gayle Clemans for The Seattle Times, photo by Ken Lambert.