Robert Pettus Estate American, 1938-2021

Robert Pettus's (1938-2021) work is inspired by an interest in the effects of time. He succeeds in capturing the various hues, tones, and colors that elusively shift throughout the day, change with the four seasons, and vary in response to weather conditions. He achieves this result by capturing the same image over an extended period of time, from the exact same vantage point, at various times throughout the day. Pettus uses a minimalist aesthetic that arrests the formal qualities of light as it falls upon and defines the forms in his photographs. His work not only alludes to the essence of time and memory, but also effectively encapsulates those fleeting moments that usually go unnoticed.

Robert Pettus was born in 1938. He graduated from Washington University and lived and worked in St Louis, MO and Tucson, AZ--he passed away in 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic at 83 years of age. Robert Pettus’ photographic works have appeared in major architectural magazines including: Architectural Record, Architecture, Domus, Japan Architecture, and featured in The New York Times Sunday Magazine. His exhibitions include shows at: Knowlton School of Architecture, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio (2003), Chicago Architectural Foundation, Chicago (2002); Forum for Contemporary Art, St. Louis (2001), and Tucson Museum of Art, Tucson, Arizona (2000). Pettus was the recipient of a grant from the Ford Foundation to photograph historic railroad stations throughout the nation. Pettus’ work is found in several public and private collections including Museum of Modern Art, New York, Library of Congress, The Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., and the Center for Creative Photography, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona.