Juliet Peter graduated from Canterbury College School of Art in the late 1930s. After the Second World War she worked full-time for the School Publications unit of the Department of Education. In 1999 she was awarded the OBE in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the visual arts in New Zealand. Peter's art practice combines an interest in painting, potting and printmaking. She was drawn to lithography because of its intimate association with painting and she studied printmaking in London during the 1950s. In the following decade she took up sculpture as a counterbalance to her activities in other media and studied ceramics at Hammersmith School of Art. Along with her husband Roy Cowan, Peter was an influential figure in the emergence of New Zealand ceramics.

Her work demonstrates a strong interest in social and environmental issues and her subject matter is wide-ranging. From her experiences in London to the bush and wild-life around her Wellington home, memorable images which speak of the artist's love of people, animals and places, her art reflect a sharp wit and a keen, observant eye.
[Source: Ferner Galleries 2010]