Harrison Knox

Through this body of work I aim to challenge the status-quo of what we define as ‘good art.’ As an early artist it always seemed that the best artist was the one who could do something in the most lifelike, realistic way. This frustrated me as I struggled to produce such work. However, when walking through the galleries of many renowned artists, such as Jean Michel Basquiat, Howard Hodgkin, and Sol Lewitt I noticed that most of the work I saw did not follow this common idea or framework. Seeing how such pieces did not have to follow a certain standard to be considered ‘good’ gave me the confidence to think outside the box and to express my ideas in an unrestricted, fluid space. My work is a manifestation of this new found confidence and mindset.

There are a wide range of reactions the viewer can have when looking at my work, such as confrontation and surprise. This can be seen through my series of cartoon-like characters; although this feeling of being stared at by multiple faces may give the viewer feelings of confrontation and intimidation, there is room for the viewer to receive a more playful message. In terms of form, I gravitated towards a schematic approach. To inspire the aforementioned reactions in the viewer, my process involved the initial development of an idea, followed by an exploration into the different ways to add my own twist. This has realised itself in an intense use of colour, shapes, juxtaposition, and exaggerated proportions.

The primary inspiration for my art would have to be Jean Michel Basquiat. I remember first seeing his work, being surrounded by large canvases of what looked like a children’s sketchbook. His expressive, visceral style is powerful as it challenges the aforementioned ideas for what constitutes as “good art.” Similar to my work, he uses a mix of bold colours, expressive figures, and despite the seemingly disunified layout of most of his pieces, each contains its own message. Basquiat’s art connects to my intention of making subject matters which are schematic and abstract, while also creating a feeling of angst within the viewer. An image which I was inspired by was the figure he painted for Time Magazine. This figure inspired my art as its smile works to portray an almost unsettling appearance. Basquiat’s fearless approach allowed my own emotions to flow through each piece, ultimately giving me a new found level of comfort and certainty with my own artistic instincts.

A consideration when arranging my work was its scale. The large scale of my work needed a way for each piece to be arranged in an effective way. This was done by starting the exhibit with my piece entitled Zeus. Its large scale and bold colour would be the first thing to confront the viewer. The piece is followed by stares of the individual faces from my series entitled Happy Faces, guiding the viewer until they are interrupted by a vertical row of three black-baised paintings: Psychodrama, Banana Joe, and Tiger King. These three commonly coloured paintings create a break in the direction and flow of the viewer’s gaze, adding to the theme of confrontation that encompasses my show. The viewer is then presented with Ultra Happy and “This looks like a mess”. Placing these two colourful pieces next to my series of black paintings creates a contrast which again confronts the viewer. The composition reflects my artistic process, specifically around struggling to settle on one idea and jumping from different styles, hence the transition from dark to colour. The following piece entitled Dumpster Diver creates a scene of dystopia achieved through a wave breaking in front of a building. The viewer is then presented with Equanimity placed above Jah Pickney, and then The Bruddahs.

Combining three unrelated scenes evokes another theme of being unstructured and spontaneous.

The exhibition ends with a t-shirt I made using coloured sharpies, entitled Bruddah 2.0. Including something out of the ordinary, such as a t- shirt, reinforces this idea that my art is supposed to reflect me and my interests - it does not matter to me whether people think a t-shirt is substantial enough to be presented in my show.