Kris Knight

Miami, FL – December 1, 2014 – Last night was pure art magic as Gucci and Spinello Projects hosted a private cocktail preview of artist Kris Knight’s solo exhibition, Smell The Magic. This pop-up, which took place in the heart of the Miami Design District, marked the beginning of Miami Art Week 2014 and also coincided with the release of Knight’s first published catalog. Gucci Creative Director, Frida Giannini, who referenced Knight’s paintings as inspiration for Gucci’s Fall-Winter 2014 Collection and has most recently collaborated with the artist on a reworking of the iconic Gucci floral print for the 2015 Cruise Collection, was joined by notable guests from the worlds of design, art and fashion at the exclusive reception, including: Christophe de Pous (President of Gucci America), Alia Al-Senussi, Sarah Arison, Fabian Basabe, Jason Pomeranc, Michael Chow, Edgardo Defortuna, Michael Govan, Rebecca Guinness, and Craig Robins to name a few.

Gentle, almost delicate portraits of young men are a parade of characters that Knight continuously inhabits in metaphor; physical manifestations of the full array of the artist’s internal psychological tones. They are secretive, veiled faces that do not directly address the viewer; rather, they are in quiet repose filled with restlessness. Knight draws both technical and contextual elements from the Late Baroque and Rococo movements embodied by artists such as Poussin, Fragonard, and especially portraitists such as Reynolds, Gainsborough, and Vigée-Le Brun. His portraits of fragile youths are charged with sexual tension, completely self-aware, but fiercely guarded. Knight exerts a firm command over painting, drawing and drafting methodologies in his paintings, and capably carries his subjects from the past into the present.

Anthony Spinello & Kris Knight

Anthony Spinello & Craig Robins

 Luis Rigual, Kris Knight, & Anthony Spinello

Kris Knight & Luis Rigual

Kris Knight & Typoe

Anthony Spinello

Frida Giannini & Kris Knight

Anthony Spinello, Kris Knight, & Frida Giannini

Terrence Brunn, Agustina Woodgate, Anthony Spinello, & Guillermo Leon Gonzalez

Anthony Spinello & Chana Sheldon

Anthony Spinello

Zachary Scott, Karent Sierra, Janice Combs, Julian Machann, Elizabeth Zayas, & Nicholas Jensen

Mario Cader, Kris Knight, Anthony Spinello, & Robert Wennett

Monica McGivern, Typoe, Merc & Glen Miller

Mario Cader, Daisy Olivera, Bernerd Garson, & Robert Wennett

Kris Knight, Christophe de Pous, & Anthony Spinello

Cia Souleles, Kris Knight, & Elizabeth Pruett

Michael Chow & Mike Blandino

Michael Chow & Susan Chokachi

Sarah Nicole Prickett & Julia Kennedy

Tara & Jack Benmeleh

Anthony Spinello & Tara Solomon

Agustina Woodgate & Anthony Spinello

Anthony Spinello & Agustina Woodgate

Kathryn Mikesell & Terry Riley

Kris Knight & Henry Alberto

Tracy Effron & Luis Rigual

Luis Rigual, Belkys Nerey, & Dr. Rian Maercks

David Polinsky, Anthony Spinello, & Bradley Carlson

Bernd Runge & Frida Giannini

Rodrigo Gonzalez, Brian Ehrlich, & Matthew Butler

Charlie Horne, Brandi Reddick, Martina & Fabian Basabe

Erin Newberg, Anthony Spinello, & Lauren Gnazzo

Edgardo DeFortuna & Andrea Greenberg

Frida Giannini & Glenda Bailey

Gama Herrera & Dan Mikesell

Anthony Spinello

GALLERY SLIDER