Oscar Peterson was born in Harlem, New York, raised in Brooklyn, NY, and is currently a resident of Millburn Township, NJ. He has worked as a professional art director and designer/illustrator for various corporations and non-profits, and as a commissioned fine arts painter who specializes in portraiture. An alumnus of Pratt Institute and The Art Students League of NY, Peterson has studied with such leading realist painters as Nelson Shanks, Max Ginsberg, and Costa Vavagiakis. A winner of the prestigious Gonzalez-Edwards Travel grant, his work appears in corporate and private collections and museums across the country. Most recently, Peterson was accepted into the 110th Annual Exhibition of Allied Artists of America. His work was selected for the Live Invitiational exhibition at the Butler Institute of American Art, in Youngstown, OH.

Peterson mostly paints from life, using traditional methods and techniques while incorporating new ideas and personal observations. His preferred medium is oil, although he frequently uses many mediums. Describing his paintings as “Contemporary Realism with an Impressionistic feel,” Peterson’s artistic style is inspired by the Impressionists and the Old Masters. His approach echoes a favorite quote from Alberto Giacometti; “The object of art is not to reproduce reality, but to create a reality of the same intensity.” 

His work can be viewed at his website, www.oscarpetersonportraits.com.