Kris Knight

Born 1980
Lives and Works in Toronto Canada

Kris Knight is Canadian painter whose work examines performance in relation to the construction, portrayal and boundaries of sexual and asexual identities. Since graduating from the Ontario College of Art and Design in 2003, Knights practice has concentrated on thematic figurative works that are often as attractive as they are disturbing.
The creative focus of Knights work involves the construction of imaginary and biographical character-based portraits, that attempt to find a balance between the dichotomies of pretty and menace, myth and reality, sanctuary and susceptibility. His classical meets illustrative paintings allude to various expressions of duality, often dealing with opposing notions of hiding and fronting, defense and vulnerability, innocence and the erotic.

Symbolist and Romantic painting, especially 18th century French portraiture and costume have influenced Knights work, as well as historical references of alchemy, mysticism and the macabre. Contemporary notions of androgyny, fashion, grunge, zombies, psychoactive drugs and small town Canadiana have also been depicted within various series. These sometimes-stark portraits of strength, exhaustion, and ...