Paul peter piech biography

Paul Peter Piech was.
Paul Peter Piech was an American artist, printmaker, and publisher.
Piech was born in Brooklyn in 1920 to Ukrainian parents who had emigrated seven years earlier.

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The Graphic World Of Paul Peter Piech

by Zoe Whitley

Art

Born in New York, Paul Peter Piech (1920-1996) worked for most of his life as a printmaker in the UK, producing prints, posters and books from his home in the London commuter belt and, later, Wales. Piech’s works, sometimes joyful, sometimes angry, always inventive, tackle the political concerns of the late 20th century, combining the artist’s advertising expertise with his forthright personal beliefs. The Graphic World Of Paul Peter Piech reproduces over 120 prints drawn from the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum and the University of Reading.

"I've been called a Fascist. I've been called a Communist. I've been called a racist. I've been called everything after any of my shows happen because of certain posters, you see. But they can't pin me down to any 'isms… I just look at humanity the way it is and then I make a graphic expression of it. The purpose of graphic expression is to realize some truth that they're missing and to do something about it… I don't want to sit around and be silent."

- Pau

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Paul Peter Piech

Paul Peter Piech was an American artist, printmaker, and publisher. Born in Brooklyn to Ukrainian parents, he spent a large part of his life in Wales, Piech is notable for his linocut and woodcut prints that advocate for social justice.

The Independent claims his "books and posters confront the viewer with the need for global responsibility and co-operation."

The National Library of Wales described Piech as "internationally acclaimed."

His Taurus Press published an edition of De Profundis by Oscar Wilde; Ugly Pieces of Metal by William J. Leahy; and John Gurney's poems Coal, a Sonnet Sequence, the last of which had illustrations by Piech.

BiographyEarly life Piech was born to Ukrainian parents in Brooklyn on February 11, 1920. His parents had immigrated from Ukraine to Brooklyn seven years earlier (circa 1913). Piech was raised speaking Ukrainian; his parents read him a variety of poetry and stories from their home country.

When Piech was 19, he studied at the Cooper Union College of Art in New York City. His professors included Germa

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The Overlooked Work of Paul Peter Piech, Mid-century “Anti-establishment” Designer

In 1979, artist and designer Paul Peter Piech incurred the wrath of the U.S. Embassy in London, which objected to his use of the American flag in a poster. In his design, Piech turned the flag on its side, with the stripes becoming vertical bars behind which black figures looked out, below them a rough cursive text read ‘My country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty!’ It was a protest of racial injustice in the country of his birth, highlighting the disparity between American idealism and the stark reality of life there. It’s an expert act of subversion, achieving the desired intent through mere reorientation, even if it’s genius was not exactly appreciated by everyone.

Although his was a singular life, Piech provides a great example of a designer and artist who wasn’t afraid to speak out about injustice and make work promoting the ideals that he believed in. Even through a successful early career in advertising, he spoke openly about his ethics and used his elevated position to celebrate