A RT
Stealing
THE SHOW WO R D S B Y M E RC E D E S S M I T H
In the last year, Cornish painter Luke Knight has gone from relative unknown, to winner of Europe’s prestigious Barcelona International Gallery Awards. We meet him at his Truro studio.
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rom hundreds of submissions, and just 30 works shortlisted for exhibition in Spain last autumn, Luke Knight’s Cornish landscape painting ‘Wish You Were Here’ scooped the competition’s substantial first prize, which includes European gallery representation and a coveted summer 2020 solo exhibition at CAGE Gallery, Barcelona. Were Luke an established name on the European art scene, this would be impressive, but as a totally new name in contemporary art, it hints at a talent altogether more special.
that opportunity allowed me to travel round Europe and see historic paintings first-hand. I spent time in Italy, Paris, and Holland at Den Bosch, the Hague and Amsterdam. I spent time in the Rijksmuseum, marvelling at Rembrandt’s mastery of paint, at his ability to create illusion with such simplicity. I was able to see Titian’s Venus of Urbino at the Uffizzi Gallery in Florence, and then a few days later compare it to Manet’s Olympia at the Musee d’Orsay in Paris. Studying in Europe was such an enriching experience - so different but so complimentary to my experience of studying in the UK. I loved being able to just get on a train and go and see paintings I had only ever read about in books. What stayed in my memory more than anything else were paintings that had the quality of quietness, of a captured moment in time - a cinematic feel perhaps, that had something to do with composition and quality of light. Those are the works that have influenced my painting ever since.
Mollie Clothier
Luke, tell us how you came to be a painter. As a child I used to paint a lot, and I later went on to study at Cardiff School of Art and Design. That’s where I started to develop a real passion, not just for oil painting, but for the paintings of Europe’s great masters. My degree included a four-month Erasmus Exchange at L’Ecole De Beaux-Art in France, and as well as developing my studio practice,
LEFT Luke Knight at his Truro studio
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