Nationality: English
Born in 1965, William Peers apprenticed himself to a stone-carver shortly after leaving Falmouth Art College. With him, he was urged to work slowly, entirely by hand rather than with machine tools. At first his work was largely figurative and he pursued a path similar to earlier direct carvers, chief amongst them Eric Gill, but gradually his work became more and more abstract.
Unusually for an abstract sculptor, Peers's work is wall hung. Hanging flat against the wall, one is made to view his work from one angle rather than from all sides and, naturally, this lends a greater emphasis to the surface of the stone and to the delicate chisel-work rather than the overall shape.
Now living and working in Cornwall, many of the sculptures are given the names of places near his home such as Oldiscleve, Gauter Point, Bradavin and, looking at the softly rolling contours of the carvings, it is tempting to see his work describing the countryside like some aerial relief map. As such he shares the same deep feeling for the Cornish landscape that Peter Lanyon, himself a keen glider pilot, conveyed in his paintings. The rolling hills and streams of the Cornish landscape lie at the root of all his recent work and the small chips left by the chisel are like tiny footprints mapping out this terrain.
A short film about William is available to view: http://filmstudiolondon.com/movies/peers/
Solo Exhibitions:
Group Exhibitions:
Born in 1965, William Peers apprenticed himself to a stone-carver shortly after leaving Falmouth Art College. With him, he was urged to work slowly, entirely by hand rather than with machine tools. At first his work was largely figurative and he pursued a path similar to earlier direct carvers, chief amongst them Eric Gill, but gradually his work became more and more abstract.
Unusually for an abstract sculptor, Peers's work is wall hung. Hanging flat against the wall, one is made to view his work from one angle rather than from all sides and, naturally, this lends a greater emphasis to the surface of the stone and to the delicate chisel-work rather than the overall shape.
Now living and working in Cornwall, many of the sculptures are given the names of places near his home such as Oldiscleve, Gauter Point, Bradavin and, looking at the softly rolling contours of the carvings, it is tempting to see his work describing the countryside like some aerial relief map. As such he shares the same deep feeling for the Cornish landscape that Peter Lanyon, himself a keen glider pilot, conveyed in his paintings. The rolling hills and streams of the Cornish landscape lie at the root of all his recent work and the small chips left by the chisel are like tiny footprints mapping out this terrain.
A short film about William is available to view: http://filmstudiolondon.com/movies/peers/
Solo Exhibitions:
| 2010 | 100 Days: Sketched in Marble, Forthcoming at John Martin Gallery | |
| 2009 | 100 Days: Sketched in Marble - Preview at Art London with John Martin Gallery | |
| 2007 | New Work in Marble - John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 2005 | Stone Carvings, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 2003 | Stone Carvings, John Martin Chelsea | |
| 2002 | Wall carvings, John Martin of London | |
| 2002 | William Peers - Stone Carvings, International Art & Design Fair, New York | |
| 1996 | Exhibition of carvings, John Martin of London | |
| 1995 | Prints & interior form sculptures, Hyde Park Gallery, London | |
| 1993 | Exhibition of carvings in Gigondas, France |
Group Exhibitions:
| 2009 | The '09 Joze Show, Accolds Farm, West Sussex | |
| SCULPTURE At Woburn Abbey | ||
| 2008 | On Form Sculpture, Asthall Manor, Oxfordshire | |
| The Secret Garden, Solomon Gallery, Dublin | ||
| London Art Fair, John Martin Gallery, London | ||
| 2007 | Art London, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 2006 | New Year Exhibition, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| Art London, John Martin Gallery, London | ||
| Neale Howells & William Peers, Moncrieff-Bray Gallery, Sussex | ||
| Into the Jungle - A Homage to Rousseau - John Martin Gallery, London | ||
| 2003 | Chelsea Flower Show | |
| 2002 | The Armoury Show, John Martin Gallery, New York | |
| 2001 | Three Eastern Heads, Art2001, Business Design Centre, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 2000 | Summer Exhibition, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| Contemporary Sculptors, Gainsborough House, Suffolk | ||
| 1998 | New Artists 1998, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 1996 | Exhibition of carvings, John Martin Gallery, London | |
| 1994 | Joint family exhibition, Hereford | |
| 1993 | Exhibition of carvings, Gigondas, France | |
| 1992 | Exhibited works for Oxford 'Art Week' | |
| 1991 | Exhibited stone carvings, Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London |
Biography