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Peter Lundberg, originally from Green Bay, Wisconsin, now maintains an active studio in Bomoseen, Vermont. He received two consecutive B.A. degrees from Skidmore College: the first in Physics and Mathematics in 1982 and the second in Art in 1983. He earned his Master of Fine Arts degree in Sculpture from Bennington College in 1985. He was an artist-in-residence at Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City from 1994-97; Sculpture Space in 1988; and in Europe at sites in Berlin, Germany and Haltorp, Sweden. He was instrumental in the creation of sculpture parks in Sweden and Berlin. Between 1994 and 2000, Lundberg was studio assistant to internationally renowned sculptor, Mark di Suvero and continues to assist di Suvero with major installations. In 2012, he was awarded the Balnaves Foundation Sculpture Prize for his piece “Barrel Roll” at Sculpture by the Sea in Sydney, Australia.
Lundberg’s sculpture is monumental in scale, typically formed with concrete and stainless steel, the shapes surprisingly curvilinear and complex. The contrasting materials create differing textures and reflective qualities, which provide subtle nuances to the large, weighty pieces. His public sculptures are included in many important collections around the world while others are installed near densely traveled areas, for example in the U.S. at the entrance to the George Washington Bridge in Manhattan, Interstate 95 in Norwalk Connecticut, Storm King Art Center in Mountainville, NY, Grounds for Sculpture, Hamilton, New Jersey. Internationally he has works sited at the roundabout entrance to Eschborn, Germany, the main train station in Nürnberg, Germany, along the harbor in Vevring, Norway and in government sponsored sculpture parks in Asia including in Beijing and Shanghai, China. In 2008 he was commissioned to build his largest sculptures to date, both over 60 feet tall, in Rendsburg, Germany and for the City Park in New Orleans, Louisiana. His current commissions include work for Taiwan, Abu Dhabi, Germany, Switzerland, Israel, Illinois and Griffiss International Sculpture Garden in Rome, NY.
Lundberg’s Sculpture Space residency began during a snowy January in 1988. Like other residents he was prompted to go in a new direction by something encountered at Sculpture Space. For Lundberg it was the massive snow piles that inspired a new casting method: pouring concrete directly into snow! The idea actually worked very well. As he describes it: “There was a twenty-foot high hardened snow pile by a nearby church and the pastor, Mr. Yodel, was kind enough to let me use it for my project. I named the first sculpture after him. The process began by digging forms directly into the snow, shapes that I would later add to and modify. The concrete company was quite skeptical at first but ended up donating the materials once they realized this curious process actually worked. It would be many years before I would come to the method I use today of digging large forms directly into earth, but clearly the seed was planted in the snow at Sculpture Space.” Lundberg’s experience at Sculpture Space was also marked by the beginning of a friendship with fellow resident, British artist and sculpture professor, David Evison. The two worked side by side in the studio and have remained close friends.
