Jasper Knight, painter, sculptor and installation artist, was born in Sydney in 1978. He studied Visual Arts at Sydney College of the Arts, University of Sydney from 1997-99. In 2003 he received a Master of Arts from the College of Fine Arts, University of New South Wales.
Jasper Knight has worked across a variety of media ranging from painting to installation and sculpture. Often thought of as the heir to the post-Pop tradition, Knight’s work joyously embraces the built or constructed nature of contemporary life. Full of dynamism and energy, his application of paint resembles the technique of gestural painters and graffiti artists, while his canvases are places of assemblage, layered and made dense by the incorporation of found signs, coloured Perspex and various textured wood panels, which recall the art of Rosalie Gascoigne and Robert Rauschenberg. In a 2010 exhibition, 'There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow’, held at the Chalk Horse Gallery, Sydney, Knight’s paintings took as their subject the New York World’s Fair of 1964-65. Referencing the Fair’s display of hope and faith in modernity and the future, they are free and gestural yet simultaneously nostalgic for the lost optimism of the past.
Knight’s works have been shown both within Australia and internationally. His solo shows include 'There’s a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow’ (2010), 'The Commissioner’ (2008-09), 'Apache’ (2008-09) and 'Dashanzi’ (2007) at the Chalk Horse Gallery, Sydney; 'Lost Highway’ (2010), 'Interior Disasters’ (2008-09) and 'Plattenbau’ (2007) at Greenhill Galleries, Perth; 'Road Trip’ (2010) and 'Skytrain’ (2008-09) at BMG Gallery, Adelaide; 'Tidemark/Thames Series’ (2007) and 'An Island in the Sun’ (2006) at Cosa Gallery, London. Knight has also displayed his work in a number of group exhibitions and fairs, including the Salon de Refuse (2008-09) at the S. H. Ervin Gallery, the Sydney Arts Fair (2008) and the Venice Architecture Biennale (2008).
Knight has been the recipient of a number of distinguished prizes. He has been a consistent finalist in national awards such the Helen Lempriere Scholarship (2003-04) and the Archibald Prize (2005-10). He has won the Mosman Art Prize (2008) and been a finalist of the Brett Whiteley Travelling Scholarship (2005). His works are held in many collections, including the Sydney Port Authority, The Rocks; NSW State Government, Premier’s Office, Sydney; Australian Consulate, Makati, Manila, The Philippines; Baker and McKenzie, AMP Building, Sydney; Artbank; and the Newcastle Region Gallery.
- Writers:
- Chalk Horse Gallery
- Date written:
- 2011
- Last updated:
- 2011
