WHITESLOPE. A beautiful heritage [2011]: 15 EPSON C-Prints (different sizes)

Artists-in-Residence Programme - Ludwik Zamenhof Centre, Bialystok

As far as a photographic aspect is concerned, Whiteslope is a formally simple project. It is rather a series of photos than a typology: beautiful men and luxuriant nature. Can we be sure, though, that these photos fit into the local context? Up to the present day, Petersen has been famous for his subversive projects.

Artists-in-Residence Programme – first one in the history of The Ludwik Zamenhof Centre, but also the first one in Petersen’s carrier – lasted merely a month. Did Petersen live up to the task despite this hectic pace? How did he spend this time and what kind of work did he manage to create? What does his exhibition mean to the local artistic scene? Can it – according to the objective of The Zamenhof Centre – initiate a dialog and allay the fear of the Other? [Adam Mazur Ph.D. | curator | Centre for Contemporary Art at Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw]

1·2·3 men in a blue T-shirt

an ongoing series on relationships and desire

DOWNTOWN Collection [2009]: 13 LAMBDA C-Prints (110/75 cm)

Oiko Petersen keeps on pushing the limits. After Polish gays, he is now tackling the topic of Down syndrome. It may sound scandalous and incredible, but there is a deeper meaning in this. The artist continues to deal with the problem of social exclusion and marginalization. (…) In his unique style, Petersen does not try to present us with fake normality, feigned solemnity or forced compassion. Rather, he points out the peculiar originality and, what is perhaps most difficult, he presents the distinctive sex appeal of people with Down syndrome, the inaccessibility of their world to us, the ordinary ones. [Adam Mazur Ph.D. | curator | Centre for Contemporary Art at Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw]

GUYS. From Poland with love [2006]: 18 LAMBDA translucent C-Prints (100/75 cm) in lightboxes

Photos by Oiko Petersen from the series entitled “Guys. From Poland with love” demonstrate different reincarnations and types of Polish men. (…) The artist plays with photographic and gender conventions achieving seductive pictures that catch the eye and provoke. (…) “Guys. From Poland with love” by Oiko Petersen are the most positive and cheerful postcards from contemporary Poland. With a nod to the Polish plumber phenomenon, the artist manages to surpass advertising norms and alters the rigid model of masculinity through its various roles and images. [Ph.D. PAWEŁ LESZKOWICZ / Institute of Art’s History UAM in Poznań]