PETER KIRKILES

Sculptor Peter Kirkiles stresses that the inspiration for his metal sculptures comes from the satisfaction of the process of fabricating a piece in a skilled manner and from his attraction to everyday objects and their relationship to humans. He finds beauty in the utilitarian tools, and objects that we may not notice in our day to day lives. By playing with their size and their proportion to human scale, he forces the viewer to examine more closely the object’s construction and its overall design importance. He has a nostalgia for well designed, well used, history laden objects.

“I’m a maker; I’m also an admirer of things well made. Over the years, I’ve chosen to make things that I love. I find the subjects of my sculpture in real life; a shoe, a camera, a clock, a ruler…made to scale, as sculpture.” –Peter Kirkiles

Kirkiles holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Tufts University, School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts and a Masters of Fine Arts from Cranbrook Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He has exhibited nationally including a 2021 solo exhibition “At Scale” at the Shelburne Museum, Shelburne Vermont. His work is held by The Shelburne Museum, The New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain, CT and by private collectors throughout the US.