The Candy Man Comes to Fairfield University with “Just Desserts” Exhibit

Internationally renowned artist and Connecticut resident Peter Anton will be exhibiting his sweet sculptures at Fairfield University.  The Fairfield University Museum of Art is celebrating the opening of “Just Desserts” on Thursday, May 9 with a special reception from 6 to 8pm.  The exhibit runs from May 10th through July 27th, 2024.

Peter Anton has been living the life of a real Willy Wonka by bringing his sugar fantasy to the world. For more than 30 years he has been creating and exhibiting his giant sweet-themed sculptures all around the globe. Anton’s sweet Shangri-la of latest works will be presented in a captivating solo exhibition “Just Desserts” at Fairfield University Art Museum from May 10th through July 27th, 2024.

“Since my very early youth I was mesmerized by the many colors, shapes and textures of foods, particularly sweets,” explains the artist. “Being in the kitchen at my mother’s side I watched her prepare various meals and desserts. I loved helping and studying and playing with the scraps. Years later I became fascinated with the power food and desserts have over people. I also love the way food brings people together during life’s celebrations as well as solemn occasions. Food can be uplifting, and I wanted to create art that uplifts and inspires people.”

Anton is one of America’s most widely celebrated and collected contemporary artists, best known for his iconic sculptures of larger-than-life boxed chocolates and other sweets. His work has earned him over one hundred exhibitions at museums and galleries around the world.

“Just Desserts” will be a sensory overload of bigger-than-life sweets. The exhibition will feature oversized sculptures of various sweets, evoking memories of childhood and adult favorites, including boxed chocolates, donuts, a candy apple, ice cream bars, a Pop tart, an ice cream sundae, candy conversation hearts and more. Anton experiments with various materials and techniques to achieve the physicality of his monumental desserts, including wood, metal, plaster, resin, and oil and acrylic paints. Each piece is a testament to his intricate workmanship and unique vision that blurs the lines between realism and fantasy.

“I am delighted that we are able to present this exuberantly fun exhibition featuring the work of an internationally renowned sculptor,” commented Carey Mack Weber, the museum’s executive director.
The artist’s first food project, created in 1991, was a giant TV dinner, complete with the apple dessert, measuring 6’ wide, and a year later followed by a series of packaged raw meats. In 1994 he began creating giant fruit and vegetables sliced open to reveal their seeds, and in 1995 he focused his imagination and skills on chocolate-themed sculptures. Other sculptures of sweets soon followed.

Peter Anton is also known for his immersive installation “Sugar & Gomorrah” at Art Basel Miami in 2012. The interactive sculpture was the world’s first art installation in which viewers rode through an exhibition aboard an actual roller coaster — winding their way through a set design created by the artist, consisting of a destructed city with tumbling pillars and fire, skeletons juxtaposed with larger-than-life sculptures of sugary treats, and partially clad live models.

Fairfield University Art Museum
200 Barlow Rd, Fairfield, CT 06824
(203) 254-4046