Gauntlet Gallery
What is Cleon Peterson’s piece called “Mercenaries (Gold)”
Summary
A flat metallic-gold tableau of nude, faceless figures locked in brutal combat against a stark white ground: a club-wielding aggressor strikes a falling man while a sprawling pile of bodies grapples, beats, and collapses around him. One commanding figure stands intact at far left holding a staff, surveying the carnage. The work is classic Cleon Peterson, distilling organized violence and the predatory exercise of power into a single chromatic field.
Why It Matters
Mercenaries crystallizes Peterson's central thesis: that civilization is a thin veneer over collective brutality, with figures reduced to interchangeable nude bodies that beat, strangle, and overpower one another. By rendering the scene entirely in a single tone of gold against white, Peterson strips out depth and individuality, turning a chaotic brawl into a flat, frieze-like composition that deliberately recalls ancient Greek vase painting and Hogarthian moral satire. The lone upright figure with a staff reads as an overseer or commander, sharpening the theme of hired violence and abused authority that runs through the title and Peterson's broader body of work.
Collector Perspective
This is the gold colorway of Mercenaries, a 2018 screen print in a tight edition of 38. The small edition size puts it well below Peterson's larger open and 100-plus print runs, making it one of the scarcer color variants in his catalog and attractive to collectors chasing the monochrome metallic editions. Expect it hand-signed and numbered in pencil in the lower margin, consistent with Peterson's standard practice. As a single-color screen print on the smaller end of the edition spectrum, it sits in the mid-tier of his print market: more sought-after than his open editions, below his large multi-panel and collaborative works in absolute value, with steady demand from his established collector base.
Historical Context
Mercenaries dates to 2018, a productive period in which Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) had moved from gallery cult figure to internationally collected artist, with major shows and a steady output of screen prints across multiple colorways. The composition's flattened, friezelike pile of fighting nudes draws directly on his long-running engagement with classical Greek black-figure and red-figure vase painting and the moral narratives of William Hogarth, recast through a graphic, street-art-inflected sensibility. Releasing the same image in several single-color editions, including this gold version, was typical of Peterson's print strategy during these years.
FAQ
What does this print depict?
A mass of nude, faceless figures fighting in a single plane: one swings a club at a collapsing man while others grapple, strangle, and fall around him, with a lone upright figure holding a staff standing apart at the left. It reads as a scene of organized, mercenary violence.
What is the edition size?
The edition is limited to 38 prints, making this gold colorway one of the scarcer variants of the image.
Is it signed and numbered?
Consistent with Cleon Peterson's standard practice, these prints are hand-signed and numbered in pencil in the lower margin.
What medium and series is it?
It is a screen print from 2018, titled Mercenaries (Gold), one of several single-color metallic and monochrome versions of the same composition.
Who is Cleon Peterson?
Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) is an American artist known for stark, high-contrast scenes of violence, power, and social conflict rendered in flat black, white, red, and gold. He draws on Greek vase painting, Hogarth, and street art, and is a frequent collaborator with Shepard Fairey.
Related Works
About the Artist
Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) is an American artist known for stark, high-contrast scenes of violence, power and social conflict, rendered in a flat, limited palette of black, white, red and gold. His chaotic compositions of fighting, clubbing and writhing figures expose the abuse of power and the brutality beneath civilization’s surface, drawing on classical Greek vase painting, Hogarth and street art. A frequent collaborator with Shepard Fairey, he shows internationally; his prints, sculptures and editions are widely collected in the urban-contemporary market.
Collecting Cleon Peterson at Gauntlet Gallery
Where can I buy authentic Cleon Peterson prints?
Gauntlet Gallery offers an extensive, authenticated inventory of Cleon Peterson prints and contemporary editions, with new drops added regularly. Browse the current collection at gauntlet.gallery.
How does Gauntlet Gallery ensure authenticity?
Gauntlet Gallery is built on curation, authenticity and transparency — every work is vetted and its provenance, edition details and condition are disclosed up front.
Does Gauntlet Gallery add new Cleon Peterson prints?
Yes. New drops are released regularly across Cleon Peterson and other leading artists; see gauntlet.gallery for the latest inventory.