Gauntlet Gallery
What is Cleon Peterson’s piece called “The Naked Man & Woman (Gold)”
Summary
A stark gold-ground screen print in which a hulking black-silhouetted man stands triumphant over the sprawled, defeated body of a woman, a club or weapon slung over his shoulder. The image distills Cleon Peterson's central subject — the brute exercise of power and the domination of the vulnerable — into a single confrontational pair set against a flat field of gold.
Why It Matters
The print compresses Peterson's recurring vocabulary of power, conquest and bodily violence into its most reduced form: one standing aggressor, one fallen victim, no crowd, no context to soften it. Stripped of his usual teeming mob scenes, the lone-pair composition reads almost like a classical relief or a Greek vase fragment depicting a hero standing over the slain, a lineage Peterson openly draws on. Executed on a luxe gold ground, the work sets seductive surface against ugly subject matter, forcing the collector to sit with the discomfort of admiring an image of domination — exactly the tension Peterson builds his career on.
Collector Perspective
A 2022 screen print in a tight edition of just 18, this is one of the scarcer Cleon Peterson releases and the gold colorway is among the most coveted of his palette variations. Editions this small rarely circulate, so secondary-market appearances are infrequent. As with Peterson's standard practice, examples should be hand-signed and numbered in pencil by the artist; the signature is visible at the lower right of this impression. For collectors, the appeal is the combination of a definitive Peterson theme — the man standing over the conquered figure — reduced to two bodies, plus the small edition and premium gold ground. Condition on the deckled paper edges and the flat gold field will materially affect value.
Historical Context
Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) built his reputation through the 2010s with paintings, murals and prints staging savage allegories of power, violence and social collapse in a flat black-white-red-and-gold palette drawn from Greek vase painting, Hogarth and street art. By 2022, when this print was made, his man-and-woman and conqueror-over-victim motifs had become signature compositions, often issued in multiple color grounds with the gold versions reserved for the smallest, most collectible editions. It sits within his broader body of work alongside his End of Empire vases, Siren and crowd imagery, and his frequent collaborations with Shepard Fairey.
FAQ
What does this print depict?
A muscular black-silhouetted man stands over a fallen, sprawled woman, a club or weapon resting on his shoulder, set against a flat gold background — Peterson's signature image of domination and the abuse of power.
How large is the edition?
The edition is just 18, making it one of Cleon Peterson's scarcer print releases.
Is it signed and numbered?
Yes. Consistent with Peterson's practice, the print is hand-signed and numbered in pencil by the artist; the signature appears at the lower right.
What is the medium?
It is a hand-pulled screen print, dated 2022, on deckle-edged paper with a solid gold ground.
Who is Cleon Peterson?
Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) is an American artist known for stark, high-contrast black-white-red-gold scenes of violence, power and social conflict, drawing on Greek vase painting, Hogarth and street art, and a frequent collaborator of 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.