Swiss-American Documentary Photographer and Educator

Specializing in

  • Film-based photography

  • Photographic tours of the American West, Florida, and Switzerland

  • Private and group classes in documentary photography, black & white darkroom techniques, and portfolio development

Black and white photo of a Publix grocery store at night with illuminated sign reading "Publix Market is a Pleasure" and a tall palm tree on the left side.

ARTIST STATEMENT

As a young person growing up in Switzerland, I rebelled against the lack of changes in my home country; I found the age-old traditions confining and limiting. In America, everything seemed possible and there seemed to be fewer restrictions on one’s dreams. I was captivated by the differences between my home country and the American pioneering spirit with its willingness to adapt and embrace the new. While I am still fascinated by the constantly changing character of American culture, I have also come to learn its price tag: uprooted communities, environmental destruction, out of control sprawl, and a lack of respect for the memories and lessons from the past that often results in a feeling of disconnect for many people.

As an American photographer with Swiss roots, I am interested in places, people, and communities that convey a sense of cultural identity, history, and heritage. I never tire of exploring rural Florida, the historic African American neighborhoods, the continually forming immigrant communities, the wide-open spaces of the West, and small towns across America. I am moved by the spirit of the people in these places and the way their experiences have shaped the land they inhabit. I hope that my work will establish more than a photographic record, but will motivate others to become more aware of, to respect, and to explore their own community’s history and heritage.

Each original exhibition photograph is hand-printed in my darkroom, using traditional silver-based processes to ensure maximum archival permanence.

-Peter Schreyer, Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A.

Peter Schreyer, Selfie at a mission in San Antonio, TX

“His quiet, perfectly composed black and white images of everyday scenes from a rural Florida are a tribute to places where time seems to have stood still. The scenes are in stark contrast to the image of contemporary American life portrayed in mass media.” Photographie: The Swiss Magazine for Photography and Digital Imaging, Zurich, Switzerland.

Photographic caption: College Park Supermarket, Orlando, Florida, 1990. In the public collection of the Swiss Camera Museum in Vevey, Switzerland, the City of Orlando, Florida, the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, Florida and the Alfond Collection of Contemporary Art at Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida.