Gauntlet Gallery
What is Cleon Peterson’s piece called “Hysteria”
Summary
A dense black-on-white screen print packing ten of Cleon Peterson's signature silhouetted figures into a single brawling melee — bald, muscled bodies in underwear swinging clubs, batons and bricks, clawing, choking and beating one another in a flat, frenzied tableau of mutual aggression. It is a definitive early example of Peterson's chaos-of-the-mob compositions, where no single aggressor or victim dominates and the whole society dissolves into reciprocal violence.
Why It Matters
Hysteria distills Peterson's central thesis — that beneath the veneer of civilization lies an animal capacity for cruelty — into one of his most crowded and kinetic single-color compositions. By stripping color down to stark black against bare paper and refusing any narrative hierarchy, he turns the print into a frieze of collective panic that consciously echoes the all-over battle scenes of classical Greek vase painting and Hogarth's moralizing crowds. As an early-period (2013) work it predates the artist's wider crossover via End of Empire and his Shepard Fairey collaborations, making it an important marker of the visual language he would carry into larger institutional and mural projects.
Collector Perspective
A 2013 hand-pulled screen print in an edition of 62, hand-signed and numbered by the artist in pencil. This sits among Peterson's sought-after early black-and-white editions, which collectors prize for their rawness and for the high figure-count, all-over composition seen here. The small edition and the strong visual density make it more desirable than his more common two-figure prints; as an established secondary-market name with active demand, it trades reliably when it surfaces, though small editions mean availability is sporadic.
Historical Context
Produced in 2013, during the period when Peterson was consolidating the stark monochrome and reduced-palette vocabulary that would define his career. Working out of Los Angeles and drawing on Greek vase painting, Hogarth, and street-art flatness, he used editions like this to circulate his imagery of social breakdown and the abuse of power. The era directly precedes his higher-profile museum showings, large-scale murals, and frequent collaborations with Shepard Fairey, making works from this window foundational to his print catalog.
FAQ
What does Hysteria depict?
A crowded, all-over melee of about ten silhouetted bald figures in underwear beating, clubbing, choking and clawing at one another with batons, bricks and clubs — a scene of total reciprocal violence with no clear victor, rendered in flat black on bare white paper.
What is the edition size?
The edition is limited to 62.
Is it signed and numbered?
Yes. Like Peterson's editions of this period, it is hand-signed and numbered by the artist in pencil.
What is the medium?
It is a hand-pulled screen print, made in 2013.
Who is Cleon Peterson?
Cleon Peterson (b. 1973, Seattle) is a Los Angeles-based artist known for stark, high-contrast scenes of violence, power and social conflict in a flat black/white/red/gold palette. He draws on classical Greek vase painting, Hogarth and street art, and 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.