Gauntlet Gallery
What is Cleon Peterson’s piece called “The Fourhorseman (Gold)”
Summary
A frieze-like composition of black silhouetted horsemen—Peterson's take on the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—galloping and rearing across a gold-to-black gradient landscape of rolling hills, their riders brandishing raised weapons against a sky punctuated by birds of prey. Rendered in flat black with a metallic gold ground, it distills Peterson's recurring obsession with violence, power, and civilizational collapse into a single apocalyptic procession.
Why It Matters
The Four Horsemen are one of Western art's most enduring emblems of war, famine, conquest, and death, and Peterson channels that iconography through his stripped-down, vase-painting-derived visual language—silhouetted bodies and horses arranged in a horizontal cavalcade that reads like a black-figure Greek frieze. The gold ground elevates the apocalyptic subject toward the sacred and the heraldic, the way gilding functioned in Byzantine and medieval religious imagery, while the rearing horses and raised arms sustain the kinetic brutality that defines his work. It is a clean, emblematic statement of his core themes—mortality, conflict, and the violence beneath order—compressed into a single legible image.
Collector Perspective
An edition of just 16 makes this a genuinely scarce Peterson screen print, well below his more common runs of 100–150, so supply is thin and any single sale moves the needle on price. The gold variant is the premium colorway of this image and the horizontal apocalyptic-frieze format is among his most recognizable and decorative, which supports demand. Expect it to be hand-signed and numbered in the lower margin in Peterson's typical fashion. With a tiny edition, market data is correspondingly sparse; pricing leans on the broader strength of his market and the appeal of low-edition gold prints rather than a deep comp history.
Historical Context
Produced in 2023, this print sits within Cleon Peterson's mature period, by which point his flat black/white/red/gold palette and silhouette-driven scenes of power and conflict were firmly established and widely collected. His engagement with classical antiquity—Greek vase painting, friezes, mythic and apocalyptic subjects—runs throughout this era alongside contemporary works on protest, authority, and the mob. The Four Horsemen subject connects his street-art-rooted practice to a centuries-old lineage of apocalyptic imagery from Dürer onward.
FAQ
What does this print depict?
Black silhouetted horsemen galloping and rearing across a gold-and-black hilly landscape, brandishing raised weapons—Cleon Peterson's interpretation of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, with birds of prey wheeling in the sky above.
How large is the edition?
The edition size is 16, making it one of Peterson's scarcer screen prints.
Is it signed and numbered?
Works in editions this small are characteristically hand-signed and numbered by the artist in the lower margin; buyers should confirm the signature and number on the specific impression.
What is the medium?
It is a screen print, produced in 2023. This is the gold colorway of the image.
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, drawing on Greek vase painting, Hogarth, and street art. He is a frequent Shepard Fairey 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.