Peter Fraenkel loved living in metropolitan cities. He grew up in a suburb of Minneapolis. After graduating from college, he began traveling around the world, gaining inspiration from his experiences and his visits. He studied art in Paris and immersed himself in all that the city had to offer. He spent many hours viewing the paintings of the masters of Le Louvre and the Musee d’Orsay, enjoyed walking along the Seine River and tried hard not to be a typical tourist. Peter then lived in San Francisco for many years, but eventually settled down a few blocks away from Time Square in New York City.

His friends lived on both coasts in the United States and his family was scattered throughout the United States, England and Argentina. His parents, brother and sister lived in Phoenix, Arizona and his other sister resided in Denver, Colorado. He had a cousin in England, who eventually moved to the States after starting his own family. Of course he still had relatives in Minnesota, his original “roots”.

Most of Peter Fraenkel’s paintings were from observations of objects surrounding him in his daily life. Included in his repertoire and subject matters were studies of his dog “Pebbles”, acquaintances and friends who would gladly poise for him and still life items that he enjoyed owning.

His landscapes would typically come from his imagination and photographs. He owned a large collection of art books that would also help jog his memory.

His medium of choice was oil. All of his oil paintings were original to Peter. Only three oil paintings were ever reproduced as prints, but many of his paintings were exhibited in two well-respected New York art galleries. Giclee prints were not popular when Peter was painting, and considered at that time to have much less intrinsic value.

The number of oil paintings in the collection of the Peter Fraenkel Gallery is limited. Not all of the paintings are shown on this site. If any of his art and paintings stir something inside of you, or you would like to know what other subject matters are available, please contact us. We will be happy to show you more details of any images.

Thank you.

A Sister's Note...

Peter was an amazing artist both on canvas and also in life. He had an ability to put people at ease and they always felt special when they were around him. He had a great heart but also a wicked sense of humor that could occasionally sting. He was dedicated to painting and I would often find him at his easel, even on a Sunday morning when I would call to say hi. He was always available with a sympathetic ear and he held his friends close. He loved quirky things as is evident from the number of yellow ducks in his paintings. He never gave up painting or traveling throughout the years that he was ill and had a painting in process and two other canvases ready to go when he died. He treasured beauty and his art is a reflection of that love.