Catherine Knight | Long Shadows

Catherine Knight | Long Shadows

17th June to 15th July 2023

Catherine Knight’s solo show ‘Long Shadows’ is a collection of work inspired by the artist’s visit in February 2022 to Oslo and Åsgårdstrand, a small town on the Oslo Fjord, which was a source of inspiration for the artist Edvard Munch.

“The paintings in Long Shadows are all based on my experience of visiting Oslo and Åsgårdstrand, a small town on the Oslo Fjord, which was a constant source of inspiration for Edvard Munch, and where he had a small house which served as a fixed point of continuity throughout his life. I visited in early February 2022 and the low winter sun kept presenting me with my own, lone, long shadow sparking thoughts of the shadows in Munch’s work as well as being a thrilling reminder of being alone in a foreign country.

The work of Edvard Munch has long been important to me. I had a print of Snow falling on the Lane on my bedroom wall as a teenager and was first drawn to his most famous and darkly emotive works - The Scream, Vampire, The Dance of Life. Karl Ove Knausgaard’s 2019 book, So Much Longing in So Little Space drew me back to thinking about Munch and reminded me of my desire to see his work for myself. I am drawn to the openness of his painting style, his energetic, sketchy and unfinished quality which allows a way in, a space for us to connect.

I made the pilgrimage to Oslo to fulfil my long- term dream of seeing Munch’s paintings in the flesh. When he died, he gifted his entire collection of work to the City of Oslo and so it is rare to see his work outside of Norway. The new Munch Museum is a vast collection of his work over 13 floors. It made a stark contrast to the simplicity of his tiny summer house in Åsgårdstrand, which is perfectly preserved and where you can see his bed, teacups (he was a tea drinker) and toothbrush. He grew vegetables in his back garden, which leads down to the shoreline.

The day I visited Åsgårdstrand was a cold, but bright and sunny February day with the most intense blue sky. Within a short walk of his house, you can see exactly where he painted many of his most famous works: Melancholy, Girls on a bridge, The dance of life, the Voice. It was an overwhelming experience- so calm and quiet compared to Oslo and to see so many familiar landmarks from his paintings felt breath-taking and perhaps a bit unreal.

This body of work is my distillation of this experience, of being there, paying homage to Munch and his Lykkehuset - ‘Happy House’.” - Catherine Knight, 2023.

Catherine Knight is a painter from Bristol who works in oils, gouache, and watercolours. She layers personal and collective stories into her paintings through landscapes, which are real, imagined, and remembered. Catherine was born in Cornwall and she did her Foundation Course at Falmouth College of Arts (2000-2001). She gained her BA Hons degree in Fine Art (with First Class Honours) at the University of Wales Institute of Cardiff (2001-2004), and later completed a MA in Fine Art at Bath Spa University (2007-2008, with Distinction).