FINDLAY GALLERIES
THREE CENTURIES IN ART
CYNTHIA KNOTT
Stirring the Horizon
CYNTHIA KNOTT
Cynthia Knott
Biography
Cynthia Knott is an acclaimed painter recognized for her luminous, horizon-focused seascapes that recall the ethereal qualities of J.M.W. Turner and the color fields of Mark Rothko. Working primarily in oil, encaustic, and metallic pigments, Knott’s work explores the interplay of light, atmosphere, and the shifting dynamics of the sea and sky.
Cynthia Knott was born March 20, 1951, in Newark, New Jersey. Knott studied at Washington University in St. Louis, initially, she pursued marine biology but found herself more drawn to illustrating what she observed under the microscope. After a semester, she realized her passion lay in art. She subsequently earned her B.A. from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in 1971, followed by a B.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts, New York, in 1975, and an M.F.A. from New York University in 1989. Early in her career, she worked as a printmaker under Robert Blackburn and studied gravure with Louise Bourgeois.
Her paintings, deeply rooted in personal history and an ongoing fascination with the sea, stem from childhood experiences with her Irish Great Grandfather, a former sea captain. His storytelling and maritime adventures instilled in her a profound connection to water, a theme that continues to define her artistic practice.
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Bloodline | oil and encaustic on linen | 54 1/4 x 72 3/8 in. | FG© 141725
After moving to Springs, New York, Knott embraced plein air painting, capturing the transient qualities of the ocean and its changing light. Her technique involves layering oil paint, metallic pigments—including gold, silver, and lapis lazuli—heated beeswax, damar varnish, and linseed oil, then repeatedly scraping and reapplying, creating what she calls a “skin of memory.”
Knott’s works have been widely exhibited in solo and group shows across the United States and internationally, including New York City, the Hamptons, and Japan, she has been the recipient of numerous awards, including Pollock-Krasner Foundation grant twice. Dubbed a “horizonologist” by her friend and former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins, Knott is deeply inspired by poetry and has collaborated with writers such as Collins, whose poem “Paintings of the Sea (For Cynthia Knott)” was dedicated to her work. Her paintings, often devoid of a signature on the front, allow the viewer to fully immerse in the vastness of sea and sky, with the horizon line serving as her true signature.
Beyond her studio, Knott has participated in prestigious artist residencies, often selecting locations near water, such as Fogo Island in Newfoundland, the coasts of Maine, Ireland, and Scotland. Her work continues to be a meditative exploration of the sublime, capturing the ever-changing, boundless nature of light and water.
Findlay Galleries is proud to present Cynthia Knott’s luminous and poetic paintings for the first time in her maiden show with the gallery, Stirring the Horizon.
Float
oil and encaustic on linen
54 1/4 x 72 3/8 in. | FG© 141726
(detail image - full painting next page)
That Night in the Garden oil and encaustic on linen
40 x 30 in.
FG© 141720
Sunday Morning oil and encaustic on linen | 18 x 30 in. | FG© 141729
Spring oil and encaustic on linen | 18 x 30 in. | FG© 141728
My influences include Turner, Constable, Rothko, and Helen Frankenthaler, with Dan Flavin’s minimalist horizon line playing a crucial role in my compositional approach. Other inspirations range from Winslow Homer and George Inness to Odilon Redon and Leonor Fini. I also draw from unexpected sources—Amelia Earhart, Madame Curie, Carl Sagan, and the Hubble telescope—exploring light, space, and the infinite. Sacred geometry and the golden ratio further shape the proportions of my horizon lines.
Poetry has also informed my work. The great poet laureate Billy Collins has written for my Horizon series, and W.B. Yeats’s White Birds remains an enduring source of inspiration.
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Cynthia Knott, Excerpt from Artist Statement
In a Moment oil and encaustic on linen
36 x 48 in.
FG© 141719
White Birds in the Foam of the Sea oil and encaustic on linen | 19 x 24 in. | FG© 141724
Isle of Hope
oil and encaustic on linen | 18 x 24 in. | FG© 141721
16 x 20 in.
FG© 141722
oil and encaustic on linen
16 x 20 in.
FG© 141731
Icarus oil and encaustic on linen
Bewitched
Sea Watch
oil and encaustic on linen
11 x 14 in.
FG© 141723
Approaching Storm
oil and encaustic on board
11 x 14 in.
FG© 141730