This week we welcome Jayda Knight, a visual artist working between New York and Miami, in painting, sculpture and street art. Knight’s practice explores the concept of eternal recurrence through contemporary topics. Social issues and personal histories intersect formally with an innovative use of patterns and ornamental motifs.
A recent sculpture “Venus; Bye bye Baaaby!” (2024) derives from a personal exploration into the question: If there is a Venus (Aphrodite) in today’s world, who is she and what does she look like? What values does she embody? What does it mean to be feminine, beautiful and powerful today?
“An underlying correlative darker sub-text inherently lingers — this psychology in my work is often only accessible to the careful viewer, but playfully veiled behind a decorative arts approach. The intentional contrast between the surface and the deep are part of what makes my work both accessible and challenging. This combined narrative in my art is often described as a visual form of the historic-present.”
Jayda earned a BFA & BArch from Rhode Island School of Design, then worked in set design for Saturday Night Live and off-Broadway shows prior to moving to Miami.
