Gauntlet Gallery
What is Cleon Peterson’s piece called “The Passions (First edition)”
Summary
A two-panel screenprint diptych in Cleon Peterson's signature flat black, white and hot-pink/red palette, depicting a forest of tangled, brawling figures — bodies grappling, kicking, dragging and beating one another among bare tree trunks. "The Passions" is an early example of the chaotic mob-violence scenes that became Peterson's defining subject, staging the brutality and lost control beneath civilized order.
Why It Matters
Dated 2009, this is one of Peterson's earliest editioned prints, made just as he was establishing the visual language — silhouetted aggressors, a restricted black/white/red palette, and dense compositions of writhing combatants — that would carry through his entire career and his later End of Empire and Shepard Fairey collaborations. The diptych format and woodland setting, with its frieze-like procession of struggling bodies, ties his street-influenced style to older traditions of allegorical violence (Hogarth, classical battle reliefs). As a foundational work from his formative period, it documents where the now-recognizable Peterson aesthetic began.
Collector Perspective
A genuinely early Peterson screenprint from 2009 in an edition of only 18, this sits among his scarcest editioned works — most of his market-familiar prints come in runs of 100–300, making an 18-piece first edition a serious rarity. It would have been hand-signed and numbered in pencil along the lower margin (signatures are visible at the bottom of each panel). Early, tiny-edition Peterson prints rarely surface on the secondary market, so liquidity is thinner than for his mainstream releases, but scarcity and the formative-period status make it desirable to dedicated collectors. Condition and the intact diptych pairing are key value drivers.
Historical Context
2009 places this at the very start of Cleon Peterson's printmaking output, years before his broad recognition through End of Empire (2014) and his prominent collaborations with Shepard Fairey/OBEY. The work belongs to his early body of brawling-figure scenes that translated his interest in social conflict, power and the violence beneath civilization into a stark, graphic vocabulary drawn from street art and classical figuration. As a "First edition" it marks an original, formative release rather than a later or reissued printing.
FAQ
What does this print depict?
A diptych of two screenprints showing a chaotic forest scene packed with silhouetted figures fighting, grappling, kicking and dragging one another among bare tree trunks — a mass brawl rendered in Peterson's flat black, white and hot-pink/red palette.
How large is the edition?
The edition size is 18, making it one of the scarcer Cleon Peterson editioned prints.
Is it signed and numbered?
Yes. Peterson editions are hand-signed and numbered in pencil; signatures are visible in the lower margin of each panel of the diptych.
What is the medium and year?
It is a screen print (two-panel diptych) from 2009, designated the First edition.
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 in a flat black/white/red/gold palette. He draws on Greek vase painting, Hogarth and street art, and is a frequent Shepard Fairey/OBEY collaborator.
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.