Peter Togel & Michael Terra

ART-SHORTS:  A Magic City Art Connection Artist Interview Blog Series

 PETER TOGEL, 3-D MM

If you could throw a dinner party and invite any artist to join, who would be on your guest list and why? Pick one living and one dead artist.
I would probably invite Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci. His observation of nature including his study of lights is amazing. He was an artist that most art shows could not put in one category. For a living artist, I would like to invite David Copperfield. While he is a different kind of artist, his illusions of the mind inspire me.

How long have you been making art?
Born in Germany, I worked in different forms of art for almost all my life. For me, simplicity was always the ultimate sophistication. From driving my high school arts teacher crazy to light installation on stages all over the world – my visual experiences can be found in Europe and the USA

How long does it generally take you to complete a work of art?
My current body of work is all about the abstract exploration of that magical boundary between nature, colors and light. It requires experience from all stages of my life. Some of the works I currently create take two or more years. For example, I form the bamboo while it is growing so each artwork is unique and very special.

What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?
Working with the creations of God that might or might not respond to the creativity of a human.

What is the range of prices that you charge for your art?
We provide artworks for every budget and taste.

How many years have you participated in Magic City Art Connection?
 This will be the first time I participate with “eluminy – the art of illumination”.

Name another favorite art show you enjoy exhibiting at besides Magic City Art Connection. When does it happen and where?
The St. James Court Art show in Louisville, KY was one of the most amazing shows because of the display of so many talents. It happens each year around my birthday in the first week in October.

To learn more about Peter or to see more images of his work, click here.

MICHAEL TERRA, Clay

If you could throw a dinner party and invite any artist to join, who would be on your guest list and why? Pick one living and one dead artist.
Well my new best dead friend would be Pablo (picasso)… Not only was he a great raconteur but he was a great cook and a very interesting ceramic artist in his own right! My living artist diner companion might be Shadow May, a contemporary of mine and a deeply interesting thinker and maker of ceramics.

How long have you been making art?
I have been making and selling art since 1974

How long does it generally take you to complete a work of art?
Wow. If I am totally honest about it- years! So much of the work that I do has to do with “figuring it out” that i have notes going way back and refinements, and more notes and sketches… once I set out to sculpt, I’m really pretty quick because I’ve worked really hard to know what I’m doing in that moment.

What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?
Getting rid of all of the unnecessary bits of the work. It’s always like writing a very spare poem to me- you only want the meat- no fat- and only enough to whet the appetite!

What is the range of prices that you charge for your art?
The least expensive thing I have is $20, at the show the most expensive thing is $2000

How many years have you participated in Magic City Art Connection?
 I think this will be my 4th year. It is one of my favorites of the year for certain

Name another favorite art show you enjoy exhibiting at besides Magic City Art Connection. When does it happen and where?
As Funny as this may sound, I really enjoy doing the BMAC show in Philly every February! I know that it is a wholesale only show but it is a joy to ‘hang out’ with the other artists in my discipline, the gallery owners, the museum shop managers… we all go out to Burmese food (or Ethiopian, if Victoria has anything to say about it) and tell great stories of “the Life”.

To learn more about Michael or to see more images of his work, click here.