2025 Keynote Speaker
Allen Peterson
Allen Peterson earned a B.F.A. in Studio Art from Birmingham-Southern College and an M.F.A. in Sculpture from the University of Minnesota. He was an Artist In Residence at Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark from 1998-2001, and Foundry Coordinator there in 2000-2001. Peterson’s work explores ideas of community in many different ways, both literally and metaphorically. He has exhibited his work both outdoors and in galleries, across the United States and abroad. He is nationally known for his sculptures in welded steel and cast iron, but also for his performance art events that involve casting and molten iron. He has received awards including an Art of Giving public art award in 2016, sponsored by Americans For The Arts, for his library sculpture Northwest Atlanta Globe.