Bold color and striking compositions are at the core of Pete Turner’s extraordinary vision. Critic A.D. Coleman wrote of Turner’s work, “A dramatist’s sense of event, intense and saturated coloration, and a distinct if indescribable otherness are omnipresent in Turner’s images.”

In 1959, an expedition from Capetown to Cairo was a turning point in Turner’s career. In 1967, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York exhibited “The Giraffe” from a 1964 expedition. A controversial image for the time, the giraffe, silhouetted against a brilliant red sky, illustrated his growing interest in treating color as a graphic element. A master colorist, he broke all the rules in a pre-computer era.

Watch this video to learn more about Pete Turner and view some of his outstanding imagery:

You may also want to consider a couple Pete Turner’s books (I own “The Color of Jazz” myself and it’s a beautiful book filled with many Turner’s great images):

The Color of Jazz

African Journey

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