2021-2023 - Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts - Master of Fine Arts
2014-2015 - Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts - Post-Baccalaureate
2011 - University of Georgia, Athens - Study Abroad, Cortona, Italy
2009-2014 - Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts - Bachelor of Fine Arts
Erik Adriel Peterson (they/them) teaches figure drawing, acrylic painting, and color theory at the Fleisher Art Memorial of Philadelphia, PA. They received an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (‘23), where they also obtained a Post-Baccalaureate degree (‘15). Their BFA was received from the Lyme Academy College of the Fine Arts ('14). A Connecticut native, they’ve resided in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania these past eleven years.
Erik Adriel Peterson paints biographic fantastical narratives. Pulling from faulty or faded memory and discordant dreams, the works aim towards un-sense. Existing in an uneasy world of their own, the paintings are a result of Peterson’s admiration of trickster storytelling. By never fully gripping onto safer truths, the works encourage discomfort. Peterson uses vibrant colors to pierce through the more muted areas, drawing attention both away from and to other parts of the image – specifically in areas which urge further reflection.