Why does the TSA operate metal detectors at airports? Is it because the world’s largest collection of nail clippers won’t be complete until it includes your nail clippers? Partially. But it’s also because TSA agents are noted appreciators of fine art, and can’t bear the thought of missing an opportunity to ogle an original piece by Peter Vanni.
Brâncuși. Calder. Mondrian. Dr. Seuss, H.P. Lovecraft, and even Pee-wee Herman to some degree, too. You might perceive all their influence in Peter’s work; poetry, which twists Plutonic permanence into fantastical forms. I envision Hephaestus stretching glowing-red ribbons out from his forge and letting them cool into Olympian taffy.
“I got my start at a bronze foundry in Santa Fe,” reminisced Peter. “My mother, an opera singer, landed me a job there assembling and welding castings – primarily for Western and Native American art, as you might imagine, although those styles ultimately wouldn’t influence my own.
“The foundry’s owner was a progressive guy, who welcomed his staff to stay and work on their own projects after hours. Moreover, he taught me a more practical approach to art than I probably would have learned in art school: that it’s first and foremost a business, where your client’s needs come above all else. When they want something specific, your job is to bend reality to their wishes.
“Designers, homeowners and businesses all commission me to make custom pieces from copper, brass, or whichever other metal they have in mind. Some are primarily functional, or entirely utilitarian: light fixtures, range hoods, fireplace doors, and the like. Others are purely decorative, and perfectly complement whichever environment I tailor them to. So long as my client has some inkling of an idea of what they would like, I’ll sculpt it to life for them.
“I do plenty of architectural work. I just recently made a copper gutter that had been designed by TEA2 Architects, and which won an award from the American Institute of Architects. I made a bronze mailbox for that project as well – a gorgeous, impressive thing which is only a little too small to be considered a guest house.
“I am very proud to work for churches as well. If you’re a Catholic in Eden Prairie, then you may already have seen the crucifix I made for Pax Christi. I was raised Catholic myself, and to view Christ as the transcendent philosopher and ethicist. That’s why I’m always taken aback whenever I see Him depicted with the same physique as He-Man. I prefer a more realistic interpretation: a man, frail, slumped, and starving; broken in body, but indomitable in spirit.
“Victor Horta is one of my greatest influences when it comes to the chairs, tables, beds, and other furniture I create. As one of the pioneers of the Art Nouveau movement, he inspires me to give my pieces an elegant, flowing aesthetic. I counterbalance that feminine mystique by adding the masculine solidity of rivets. Yin, and yang. Symmetry.
“Metalwork takes a whole lot of muscle and makes just as much noise. It will smash, cut, burn, and exhaust you while you’re just starting out. It will smash, cut, burn, and exhaust you just a little bit less once you’ve mastered it. And that’s why I love it. I am a jock – but instead of linemen, I’m wrestling against the world’s least forgiving medium.”
Visit Peter’s gallery at 8470 Galpin Boulevard, Chanhassen to see his uncommissioned pieces for sale, or speak with him about whichever special thing you have in mind. PeterVanniSculptor.com
"I am a jock – but instead of linemen, I’m wrestling against the world’s least forgiving medium.”