Being and Becoming By Heide Brandes | Photos by Emily Brashier Published on-line 12.30.2015 for January 2016 print edition How Nichols Hills’ Mayor is bringing a forgotten artist to the forefront, and how that artist is a part of us all
To Peter Hoffman, second ward councilman and current mayor of Nichols Hills, life is art.
As leaders of the distinct community of Nichols Hills, Hoffman says he and the city council are constantly creating the city into the living art that it is, forming what is and what could be with the brush strokes of decisions and actions taken on behalf of the city. “My love of art is an embodiment of my love of community and being a good steward,” said Hoffman in his office, which explodes with the vibrant colors of the formerly-unknown artist Boris Chetkov. “I see our community as a painting. I see it as a kind of structural, flowing, temporal sanctuary, and everything we do on the council is a brush stroke on this living creation called Nichols Hills.
“At this moment, I am fortunate to be an artist for the community.” With his passion for art and for service to the community, Hoffman has another passion, one that has consumed him for over a decade and led to the creation of the Hoffman Art Institute. That passion, which has led him from the golden hills of Santa Fe to the cold steppes of Russia, is evident in every corner of Hoffman’s life. That passion is the works of Boris Chetkov, one of Russia’s forgotten artistic geniuses. With the drive and love of Hoffman behind the effort, the works of Boris Chetkov are finally seeing the light of day and critics everywhere are falling under the colorful, transcendent spell of a man who painted the essence of life in bright splashes of emotion.
Art As Life Hoffman’s father was a member of the first Nichols Hills City Council and the city’s third mayor. His mother was a driving force of civic involvement, and ultimately created the Arts Festival of Oklahoma City in the 1960s. All his life, Hoffman and his siblings were taught the value of being part of something bigger than themselves. “I love our community and what it is. I wanted to be a steward of going forward,” said Hoffman, who is ending his ninth year on the council, which rotates its mayor every year. “Just like Boris Chetkov’s paintings, our city represents the interconnectivity of all things. We are much more alike than different, and that interconnectivity binds us. His art is all about being and becoming—just like our city.” Hoffman was born with a love of art in his heart. Throughout his life, he amassed a collection of important works of art. He especially loved California impressionists, and he would spend hours contemplating the paintings he owned.
“One day, I came home—this was about 10 years ago—and I realized I was admiring the paintings, but I was no longer engaging with the art,” he said. “I asked, ‘Is there not more to art? Is there not a way to use the art to start an inner dialogue of what it is and what it might be and where it was fluid. Was there art that represented the fundamental things about life that made a real impact?’” With that question burning in his mind, Hoffman sold his collection and began his quest. On May 2, 2006, Hoffman and his wife were walking along Canyon Road in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He was passing the Pushkin Gallery when suddenly colors so dynamic and explosive stopped him dead. He saw a painting called “Self Portrait in a Top Hat,” and in that moment, he said he discovered the most engaging and arresting piece of art he’d ever seen.
“I thought, ‘Oh my god. He’s speaking without talking. He’s asking me to engage with him,’” Hoffman said. “I disappeared from my family and spent the rest of the days in the gallery storerooms going through this amazing collection of art. I thought, ‘This is really happening.’ For months and years, I began to look and buy quite a few of Boris Chetkov’s paintings.” With Chetkov, Hoffman said he felt for the first time in his life he had found an artist who captured the full spectrum of life, beauty, spirituality and interconnectivity in paintings in a way that was skillful, intuitive and colorful. And like Sergei Shchukin’s championing of the artist Matisse, Hoffman created a dream to expose the world to the genius and talent of a Russian artist who may have died in obscurity.
Bringing Chetkov Alive Chetkov worked alone and in secret for most of his career in Russia. Though he died in 2010, Chetkov’s life was a series of difficult and tragic instances that still could not kill the artistic spirit of the man. “He was fearless and requested the constancy of creation,” said Hoffman. “He had an irrepressibility of spirit.” After collecting numerous Chetkov paintings, Hoffman asked Kenneth Pushkin and Oklahoma City’s Linda Howell in 2012 to partner with him to bring the Chetkov paintings to Oklahoma City.
“We did a show at the Howell Gallery, and 40 of his paintings sold for a huge amount,” Hoffman said. “The Chetkov family then knew I was all in. I had 30 of his paintings in 2012. I reached out to the family who had kept a treasure trove of his best paintings.” Chetkov’s widow began showing Hoffman many important paintings that he had never seen. As Hoffman continued to build his collection, he started to make the paintings available to others. Peter created the Hoffman Art Institute a little over a year ago, the sole mission being to bring the works of Chetkov to life. It also features five other contemporary artists of the west who share that special creative spirit with beauty and content. In 2015, The Hoffman Art Institute hosted a Chetkov exhibition at Art Bastion in Miami to rave reviews.
“They went crazy over it,” Hoffman said. “Broward College in Fort Lauderdale also asked for the exhibit, and the faculty and students went nuts. Chetkov resonates with people through his intensity of color, beauty and deep understanding. He is relevant to all people.”
Being And Becoming In 2016, Hoffman said the vision of the Hoffman Art Institute will come full circle with a major show featuring the genius of Boris Chetkov. “Chetkov’s painting reflects the inner truth and essence of a subject, rather than an exact likeness, and I want Oklahoma City to see that,” Hoffman said. “Just as I try to add value to Nichols Hills and help it in becoming, so Chetkov paints in the exact way. We are all connected. All my life, everything I have done and am doing is embodied and comes together in these paintings. I have decided to help bring that consciousness to others.”
To view the entire Chetkov collection and learn more about The Hoffman Art Institute, visit hoffmanartinstitute.org.