Learning about Peter and his Pencil Drawings

- An Exclusive Interview-
In Peter's own Words

"My goal as a 32 year old artist is to be known internationally for my artwork. I have lived in the USA for a little over eight years after having travelled for sometime between the United Kingdom and my home country of Ghana.

Currently, I work as the Production and Design Manager for the Harry S. Truman College newspaper. I am also working at Faie's Afrikan Art Gallery in Chicago as a representative.

My paintings are drawn 100% by hand from start to finish. A computer does not touch the paper I draw on, not even to sketch or to make an outline. I draw my paintings entirely by hand.

You may ask why you see a computer in my biography picture! The reason is simple: I used to have physical photographs on my desk while I was drawing. If I touched or brushed my hand against these photographs, the graphite pencil would often rub off on the photo, destroying the detail needed to see in order to draw. Drawing from photographs with graphite pencils is very precise and entails a great deal of carefulness. So now I scan my photograph subjects and put them on a computer.

You may also discern in my paintings contrasts between dark and light In Fine Art Stores, there are dark and light graphite pencils labeled with a combination of letters and numbers which code their level of shading. They actually sell them in Ghana as well. I use these levels of dark and light graphite to achieve the contrast and smoothness in my original African paintings.

I never erase any part of my artworks. I was taught that if an artist makes a mistake, we should draw over it. I do use an eraser when I am shading, when I want to highlight. I also use an eraser around the edges of the art to erase leftover finger and palm smudges. But basically, I use the eraser to enhance the painting, make it neat and to clean the background, not to fix a mistake."

...Conclusion...

Peter Boateng states that his family has no history or background in artistry.

He studied at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana, where he had his Bachelors in Communication Design majoring in Graphic Designing and Advertising. He is currently studying at Harry S. Truman College in Chicago pursuing Computer Information Systems.

His young art career has brought him exhibitions in the UK, Ghana, and the USA. Each painting can take up to 80 hours to complete.

- See, in photos, Peter's process of drawing -