Clarke was best known for his graphic
prints, particularly his
woodcuts, and in later years he moved into
collage. He also used leather, glass,
found objects and other mixed media. He used oil pastels for his art work “October Landscape”. His artistic career spanned more than six decades and he produced a large number of works and appeared in many exhibitions. Described as a "quiet chronicler", his work offers a critique of South Africa's social and political history over 60 years. He received six international and six national awards for his art and writing, and had more than 70 solo exhibitions since 1957 in South Africa,
Nigeria,
Kenya,
Australia,
USA,
Norway,
Israel,
Austria and the
UK. He also had many group shows in South Africa,
Yugoslavia,
Germany,
Brazil,
Austria,
Italy, USA,
Argentina, Norway,
Botswana,
Japan,
Switzerland and
France. In 2005 he was awarded the
Order of Ikhamanga (Silver) by President
Thabo Mbeki, and received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. His 2011 exhibition was entitled
Listening To Distant Thunder. A major
retrospective exhibition of his work,
Wind Blowing on the Cape Flats, took place in
London in 2013. • 1955: Drum International Short Story Award • 1965: Awarded the Accademico Onorario of the
Accademia delle Arti del Disegno,
Florence, Italy • 1975: Elected Honorary Fellow in Writing,
University of Iowa, US • 1982: Diploma of Merit in Literature, Universita delle Arti, Italy • 1983: Diploma of Merit in Art, Academia Italia • 1983: Honorary Life Member of the Museum of African American Art, LA, US • 1984: Elected Honorary Doctor of Literature, World Academy of Arts and Culture,
Taipei, Taiwan Key dates • 1929: Peter Clarke was born • 1957:
Golden City Post, Cape Town, South Africa (first solo) • 1960: Yugoslavia (SA Graphic Art) • 1961: Galerie Schoninger,
Munich, West Germany (SA Graphic Art) • 1961: São Paulo Biennial • 1963: 5th International Graphic Art Biennale,
Ljubljana, Yugoslavia,
Albertina Museum,
Vienna, Austria (International Graphic Art) • 1964: Venice, Italy (
Biennale) • 1965: Mbari Cultural Centre,
Ibadan, Nigeria (solo) • Chem-Chemi Cultural Centre,
Nairobi, Kenya (solo) • 6th International Graphic Art Biennale, Ljubljana, Yugoslavia • 1968:
Palazzo Strozzo, Florence, Italy (First Exhibition of International Graphics) • 1969:
Palazzo Strozzo, Italy (Second Exhibition of International Graphics) • 1970: Edrich Gallery, Stellenbosch (solo) • 1971: SA Graphic Art touring Netherlands, Belgium and
W. Germany • 1972:
Buenos Aires, Argentina (Tercera Bienal Internacional del Grabado) • 1973: Shell Harbour Art Centre, Shell Harbour, NSW Australia (solo) • Pratt Graphics Centre, New York City (group) • 1973-74:
Fisk University,
Nashville, Tennessee, US (solo) • 1976: Kuumba Workshop, Southside, Chicago, US (solo) • 1977-78: SAAA, Cape Town (
Our World is a Ghetto – solo) • Community Arts Project, Mowbray, Cape Town (solo) • Public Library, Grassy Park, Cape Town (solo) • 1978-79: Sandvika Kino Vestibyle, Sandvika, Norway • 1979–82: Atelier Nord, Oslo, Norway (Graphic Art – group) • 1979:
Pratt Institute, New York • 1981: Atlantic Art Gallery, Cape Town (Illusions and Other Realities – solo) • 1982: South African Art, National Gallery, Gaborone, Botswana • 1983: Kanagawa, Japan (International Exhibition of Prints) • 1984: SANG (Masterworks on Paper), Kanagawa, Japan (International Exhibition of Prints), Jerusalem Artists' House, Israel, Frederikstad, Norway (Norwegian International Print Biennale) • 1985: FUBA (A Selection of Work by Distinguished Black Artists), Grenchen, Switzerland (X Internationale Triennale Fur Originale Graphik) • 1987: Chelsea Gallery, Wynberg, Cape Town (solo), Campinas, Brazil (Bienal Internacional de Gravura), Museum fur Volkerkunde, Frankfurt, W. Germany • 1990:
Freedom Now, Namibian independence exhibition, Windhoek, Namibia • 1992: Retrospective exhibition –
The Hand is the Tool of the Soul, at Natale Labia Museum, Muizenberg, Cape Town • 1994: 3rd Triennial World Exhibition of Prints,
Auvergne, France • 1995: 18th Triennial World Exhibition of Prints,
Kanagawa,
Japan • 1996: Drawings of Tesselaarsdal,
Caledon Museum • 1998:
Vital Expressions, Association of Arts Gallery, Bellville, South Africa • 1999: Lipschitz Gallery –
A Personal View, Cape Town • 1999: Vital Expressions at Natal Technikon Art Gallery, Durban • 2000: Bertolt Brecht House, Berlin, Germany • 2000-01: City Press exhibition called
Baggage • 2001: Manuscript Exhibition 3 (Art Studio), Johannesburg • 2001: Solo exhibition in Exeter, UK • 2002: Collection of books at Natal Technikon, KwaZulu-Natal • 2003: AVA, Cape Town:
Surface=/=Print (part of Impact conference) • 2011:
Listening To Distant Thunder, The SA National Gallery
Collections Clarke's work is in the collections of the Arnold Becher Museum, SA; Baerum Kommune, Sandvika, Norway;
Caledon Museum, Caledon, SA; Cape Town City Library, SA; Community Arts Project, SA; Dennis W. Koles, Kiama, NSW, Australia;
District Six Museum, CT, SA; Durban Art Museum, SA;
Fisk University, Nashville, Tennessee, US; Fuba Collection, Johannesburg, SA; Hymie and Jean Berndt, Kenilworth, SA;
Johnson Publishing Co., Chicago, US;
King George VI Art Gallery, PE, SA; Kunsthalle Museen der Stadt Bielefeld, Germany;
Library of Congress, Washington D.C., US;
Livingstone High School, Claremont, SA; Municipal Collection, Fish Hoek, SA; Municipal Museum, Simon's Town, SA; Museum of African American Art, LA, US; Museum of Contemporary Art, Skopje, Yugoslavia; Natal Technikon, Durban, SA; National Museum and Art Gallery, Gaborone, Botswana, PAM; Nasou Publishing Co, CT, SA; National Art Gallery, Gaborone, Botswana, Pentech, Bellville, SA;
Pretoria Art Museum, Pretoria, SA; SA Fine Worsted Co, CT, SA; Sasol Collection, Stellenbosch, SA; Stichting Afrika Museum, Berg en Dal, Holland;
South African National Gallery;
University of Fort Hare, Alice, SA;
University of the North-West, SA;
University of Stellenbosch, SA;
University of the Western Cape, SA;
University of Zululand, SA;
William Humphreys Art Gallery, Kimberley, SA; and the Bruce Campbell Smith Collection. == Honours ==