Jasper Knight’s Exhibition Talking Underwater.

Nat’s bar,2024, Enamel, gesso and gloss acrylic on linen, 140 x 150 cm

The Test Dream, 2024, Enamel on aluminium, 50 x 40 cm

Sydney artist Jasper Knight in his studio.

Sydney artist Jasper Knight’s latest exhibition, Talking Underwater, offers an evocative exploration of disintegration through a monochromatic lens. Inspired by Billy Wilder’s 1940s classic The Lost Weekend, the exhibition mirrors the film’s narrative of gradual breakdown across fifteen compelling works. Knight’s use of mid-blue hues, now a hallmark of his recent oeuvre, accentuates the exhibition’s thematic focus on the dissolution of time and form.

Talking Underwater is a significant departure from Knight’s recent exhibitions which centred on botanical observations of urban life. This new series marks only the second figure-based exhibition in Knight’s two-decade career, which spans over fifty shows. His fascination with surface and texture is evident as he employs diverse media, including glossy enamel on aluminium and linen, acrylic on coreflute, and works on paper.

Knight describes his process, stating, “I was intrigued by the portrait of disintegration that sat at the centre of The Lost Weekend and wanted to capture that across different media, different stages, different treatments of light. My early Talking Underwater paintings started off as more figurative and formal, then as the series progressed, they became freer, more confident and the faces dripped away, echoing the narrative of the film. I didn’t do it deliberately; it just happened that way.”

Expressive Faceless Portraits by Iranian Artist Salman Khoshroo.

Iranian artist Salman Khoshroo's visually arresting abstract portraits have undefined features that capture the potency of life and human spark, created with minimal intervention.

Knight’s esteemed career is marked by numerous accolades. He is an eight-time finalist in the Archibald Prize, with his most recent nomination in 2022. Additionally, he has been a finalist in the Sulman and Wynne Prizes and won the Mosman Art Prize in 2008. His works are held in prominent national and international collections, including the National Gallery of Australia and the National Portrait Gallery. Knight’s contributions to the art world extend beyond his creations; in 2007, he co-founded Chalk Horse Gallery with the support of the Australia Council and the City of Sydney.

Talking Underwater will be on display at Chalk Horse from 8 August to 8 September 2024. For more information, click here.

Is It You?: Faceless Painted Portraits by Fabio La Fauci.

Is It You? hints at our own disconnectedness in a world saturated with images; our curiosity and need for recognition veiled in an additional level of complexity and frightening disorientation.

Dos Dedos, 2024, Gloss acrylic and gesso on linen, 183 x 152 cm

[Images courtesy of the artist.]