Peter Hide
Peter Hide was born in Surrey in 1944. He studied at Croydon College of Art (1961-64) and at St Martin's School of Art (1964-67) where he was a student of Anthony Caro. After art school Hide supported his work as a sculptor through teaching and successively held posts at Norwich School of Art (1968-74) and at St Martin's School of Art (1971-78), where he taught on the postgraduate course from 1974. He moved to Canada, and since 1977 has been Professor of Sculpture at the University of Alberta in Edmonton.
The move to Canada gave Hide the time and space to develop in his own terms. It was liberting for him to be away from influences prevalent in Britain, and his work has consequently developed a strong individual character. He has always worked in steel, and his large abstract pieces are confident expressions of mass and weight.
In an illuminating article on Peter Hide, Steel Hide Away by Russell Bingham, in Border Crossings, issue number 69, in 1999, we are told, 'To anyone one who has followed Hide's work over the years, a chance to look again at some of the earlier works is illuminating. The sculptures made in Canada shortly after his arrival... were created during a period when Hide was reacting against Caro's openness by making his sculptures dense and massive.' He also wrote, 'In order for Hide to find his real originality , it was necessary that he reappraise his work in relation to Caro. "I think a lot of Sculptors," Hide says, "especially those who were taught by Tony Caro, decided deliberately to move as far away as possible so as not to be seen as his disciples. The problem is that if you do that you move away from extremely fertile territory." '
Peter Hide has exhibited his work regularly and widely, and is represented in major collections around the world. He lives and works in Edmonton, Canada.
