January 2026 Exhibit
Nicholas Knapton
Surfing with a Lifejacket
We are excited to welcome back Nicholas Knapton, a Pacific Northwest artist who has been balancing his career between Astoria, Oregon and Berlin, Germany for nearly three decades. For this series, Surfing with a Lifejacket, Nicholas brings paintings and drawings for his solo exhibition that takes on a more personal note. The show opens during Astoria’s Artwalk, Saturday, January 10 and Nicholas will be at the gallery that evening from 5 – 8 pm, come say hello and learn more about him and his diverse career. The exhibition will be on view through February 9.
Knapton, born in York, England and raised in Astoria, has a fascinating story. His sense of connection to home has always been strong, regardless of how far away he found himself and with the ever-present need to immerse himself in other cultures, studying other languages and always gathering knowledge from wherever he landed to then imbue into his artwork. Back now, full time in his Astoria studio he has settled and with that comes looking inward, considering personal issues as well as the world at large. He takes a keen look at life’s struggles, whether it be on a global level or internal to himself and how those can relate.
Knapton continues with his recognizable direct and edgy abstract style, however within this series he brings brighter color to his palette. Gone is the moody darkness inspired by old gritty Astoria and war-torn East Berlin, instead turning to a more playful upbeat pallet, perhaps reflecting a hopeful future that we all look towards. His style still contains reference to the avant garde German Expressionist movement, an inescapable influence from his years living in Berlin within the rebellious counterculture, after the Wall came down and the unification of the country.
About this series he states: “The work is about perspective—of the figure, on myself, on paper, on canvas. Ten small drawings wrestle with seizures: containment, interruption, collapse, repair. The large canvases take on the figure at scale, where the body becomes both subject and opponent. My neurologist told me that if I were to surf, I’d have to surf with a life jacket. The image is absurd, impossible, necessary. Protection and suffocation at once. That tension runs through everything: the body versus the idea, ego versus shame, resistance versus surrender.
What remains is persistence. A refusal to stop dragging the figure, and myself, back into the frame—again and again—until movement itself becomes the subject.”
Knapton, who began his art studies at Clatsop Community College under the tutelage of Royal Nebeker and Richard Rowland has balanced a career that has taken him back and forth between two very distinctive art communities, exhibiting his work here in Astoria, Portland to the other side of the Atlantic in Berlin, Paris, Estonia, and other European art houses. This dual career is what inspires him, allowing him to participate in an epicenter to creative thought while also bringing it home to a quieter village lifestyle. It is living here, in a more rural setting, that gives him space to contemplate his broader experiences, shaping and defining his focus. His experience in both communities translates to a bold painterly style where both dynamic layers of energy and spontaneity find spaces of open calm and dynamic use of color.
Knapton’s flexibility in lifestyle has allowed him experiences few will encounter. After finishing studies at Clatsop Community College, he headed to Portland where he attended Portland State University, studying under Northwest notables such as Mel Katz, Linda Wysong and Susan Harlan. With a strong core of knowledge, Knapton then jumped into the then burgeoning Berlin art scene. While in Europe he assisted with the restorations of the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, London, and participated in the Wrapped-Reichstag project by famed installation artists Christo and Jeanne Claude in Berlin. Back home, his figurative work has been juried into the annual Au Naturel International Juried Exhibition multiple times by acclaimed art professionals, including an awarded purchase prize from the college. He continues to exhibit his work both in the Northwest as well as Berlin.
Nicholas Knapton
Surfing with a Lifejacket
We are excited to welcome back Nicholas Knapton, a Pacific Northwest artist who has been balancing his career between Astoria, Oregon and Berlin, Germany for nearly three decades. For this series, Surfing with a Lifejacket, Nicholas brings paintings and drawings for his solo exhibition that takes on a more personal note. The show opens during Astoria’s Artwalk, Saturday, January 10 and Nicholas will be at the gallery that evening from 5 – 8 pm, come say hello and learn more about him and his diverse career. The exhibition will be on view through February 9.
Knapton, born in York, England and raised in Astoria, has a fascinating story. His sense of connection to home has always been strong, regardless of how far away he found himself and with the ever-present need to immerse himself in other cultures, studying other languages and always gathering knowledge from wherever he landed to then imbue into his artwork. Back now, full time in his Astoria studio he has settled and with that comes looking inward, considering personal issues as well as the world at large. He takes a keen look at life’s struggles, whether it be on a global level or internal to himself and how those can relate.
Knapton continues with his recognizable direct and edgy abstract style, however within this series he brings brighter color to his palette. Gone is the moody darkness inspired by old gritty Astoria and war-torn East Berlin, instead turning to a more playful upbeat pallet, perhaps reflecting a hopeful future that we all look towards. His style still contains reference to the avant garde German Expressionist movement, an inescapable influence from his years living in Berlin within the rebellious counterculture, after the Wall came down and the unification of the country.
About this series he states: “The work is about perspective—of the figure, on myself, on paper, on canvas. Ten small drawings wrestle with seizures: containment, interruption, collapse, repair. The large canvases take on the figure at scale, where the body becomes both subject and opponent. My neurologist told me that if I were to surf, I’d have to surf with a life jacket. The image is absurd, impossible, necessary. Protection and suffocation at once. That tension runs through everything: the body versus the idea, ego versus shame, resistance versus surrender.
What remains is persistence. A refusal to stop dragging the figure, and myself, back into the frame—again and again—until movement itself becomes the subject.”
Knapton, who began his art studies at Clatsop Community College under the tutelage of Royal Nebeker and Richard Rowland has balanced a career that has taken him back and forth between two very distinctive art communities, exhibiting his work here in Astoria, Portland to the other side of the Atlantic in Berlin, Paris, Estonia, and other European art houses. This dual career is what inspires him, allowing him to participate in an epicenter to creative thought while also bringing it home to a quieter village lifestyle. It is living here, in a more rural setting, that gives him space to contemplate his broader experiences, shaping and defining his focus. His experience in both communities translates to a bold painterly style where both dynamic layers of energy and spontaneity find spaces of open calm and dynamic use of color.
Knapton’s flexibility in lifestyle has allowed him experiences few will encounter. After finishing studies at Clatsop Community College, he headed to Portland where he attended Portland State University, studying under Northwest notables such as Mel Katz, Linda Wysong and Susan Harlan. With a strong core of knowledge, Knapton then jumped into the then burgeoning Berlin art scene. While in Europe he assisted with the restorations of the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, London, and participated in the Wrapped-Reichstag project by famed installation artists Christo and Jeanne Claude in Berlin. Back home, his figurative work has been juried into the annual Au Naturel International Juried Exhibition multiple times by acclaimed art professionals, including an awarded purchase prize from the college. He continues to exhibit his work both in the Northwest as well as Berlin.
