“…For thirty years now, Peter Hutton has been building a radical and singular body of work. A sort of primitive documentary, silent, which celebrates the beauty of the world without forgetting to observe people, the conditions they live and work under…” – Cahiers du cinéma
The loss of Peter Hutton in June robbed personal independent filmmaking of one of its great artists and teachers. Through nearly fifty years of 16mm filmmaking, Peter took one of the fundamental aspects of cinema, the fixed rectangular frame, and made it his primary artistic focus, a means of exploring vision and consciousness. Peter’s elegant compositions were silent windows that documented widely divergent locations as places of mysterious activity, filled with sensual forms and subtle rhythms. The 16mm camera was Peter’s sketchpad, and it accompanied him on his travels to many parts of the world. His sharp observational eye was critical and politically aware, and was always alert to marvels of the moment, visual details that the camera was able to record and that would normally be missed.