Kent Knowles

"Urchin"

"Oddity"  acrylic on canvas  40" x 30"  2013

"Song"  acrylic on canvas  30" x 40"  2013

"Niagara"  acrylic on canvas  40" x 30"  2013

title unknown

Kent Knowles, in addition to being an artist, is also apparently an illustrator, an animator, a screen writer, and a parent. For those of you who don't have kids, that last bit of information makes this list all the more impressive. Despite the limitations of dividing finite time in to a plethora of pursuits, he still manages to be a prolific painter (please pardon the alliteration - it just happened that way, I swear). More importantly though, he's a very talented painter as well. He combines an obvious love of traditional techniques with a contemporary narrative sensibility. That sensibility, often lumped under the loose term of pop-surrealism, often flies in the face of twentieth century post modern concerns, embracing narrative forms, illustrational techniques and dark humor. The illustrative styles that most members of this creative tribe employ are detail oriented and tight. But Mr. Knowles, an illustrator himself, and author of the children's picture book Lucius and the Storm, uses loose confident expressionistic techniques that serves to heightens the effect of his evocative imagery. His characters, frequently young women, seem lost in a perplexing and sometimes frightening, but always fascinating, natural world. Looking back through his early work I began to wonder if his drawing style and subject matter wasn't some kind of odd amalgam of Odd Nerdum's stark surrealism and the large-limbed figures of Picasso's neo-classical phase. Maybe you could throw in a little early Lucian Freud for good measure. But whatever it's sources or inspirations the results are uniquely his own.

To see more visit the artist's website: www.kentknowles.com
You can see original work at Linda Matney Gallery in Williamsbirg, VA
and at Kai Lin Art in Atalanta, GA