Thomas McKnight
(American, b. 1941)
“I try to integrate what is real about a place or thing with its underlying truth - that is, its invisible soul.”
— McKnight
American artist Thomas McKnight’s architectural and scenic artwork is recognizable and instantly enjoyable. His signature style uses clean lines and shapes with vibrant colors delivered in flat, smooth textures, and his bold geometrical features are reminiscent of the Art Deco style. Art appreciators and limited edition print collectors worldwide admire and enjoy his paintings and prints.
McKnight was born in Lawrence, Kansas in 1941. His mother gave him oil paints at age 13, and at 16, the art director of Harper’s Bazaar told him he “had it.” He attended Wesleyan University, a small but prestigious liberal arts college, in Middletown, Connecticut, where he was one of five art majors. During his studies at Wesleyan, he spent his junior year in Paris, where he acquired a love of European civilization. After graduating and spending a year at Columbia University completing graduate work, McKnight got a job at Time Magazine in 1964 where he worked for eight years with a two-year interruption, during which he was in the U.S. Army in South Korea. In 1972, McKnight left his position at Time, and went to Mykonos, the Greek island, for the summer. Here he painted in earnest and fell in love with a vacationing Austrian student named Renate, whom he married the next year.
During the 1980s, McKnight’s art became increasingly well-known and desired, especially his limited-edition serigraph prints. In 1994, the White House commissioned him to paint the first of three images for President Clinton’s official Christmas card. McKnight’s works are in the permanent collections of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution. Currently the artist resides in Litchfield, Connecticut with his wife. His work continues to be exhibited, collected, and appreciated as a beautiful and important part of the world’s art culture.
American Fine Art, Inc. is proud to feature the original works and limited editions of Thomas McKnight. Visit our 12,000 sq. ft. showroom in Scottsdale, Arizona or call today. Our website is offered only as a limited place to browse or refresh your memory and is not a reflection of our current inventory. To learn more about collecting, pricing, value, or any other art information, please contact one of our International Art Consultants. We look forward to giving you the one on one attention you deserve when building your fine art collection. We hope you find our website helpful and look forward to seeing you in Scottsdale soon.