In his work, Vancouver-based artist Ryan Peter investigates the division between painting and digital photography, focusing on the aural potential and repurposing of materials. Surrealism, biomorphic abstraction, and recent scientific phenomena - such as the dematerializing effects of digital imaging technologies or the alienating forces of genetic engineering - are frequent themes in his work. Through the use of seemingly ordinary chemical substances such as industrial plastics, inkjet printer inks, and Pepto-Bismol, the artist creates multiple entry points for the work, bringing forward associations atypical to painting. His amalgamation of synthetic materials creates an opportunity for mistakes to be utilized and amplified, resulting in what Peter calls "an attempt to recuperate the organic from the artificial."
