Contemporary British artist based in France, painting, drawing & performance on the human body & our relationship to the natural world.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Raised in Scotland Sarah Knill-Jones studied at the Glasgow School of Art and obtained her MA from University of the Arts London. Her practice incorporates drawing, painting, print making, performance and collaborative experiments.
Knill-Jones’ work is a visceral response to the fragile balance of contradictory forces which make us human. Drawing from the body is her starting point, from which she teases out the line to make gestural paintings and artworks to include performative drawing. Having moved countries often, the imposed relocations have contributed to a desire to reinforce interconnection and the interdependence of all living beings.
She has had solo exhibitions at The Museum of Modern Art Baku, The Centre for Contemporary Art, Baku Azerbaijan, IESA gallery Paris.
Duo and group shows include La Galerie des Photographes, Julio Artist Run space Paris, Poush Clichy & Aubervilliers, Studio 1.1 & the Tripp Gallery London, The Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh and Largo das Artes in Rio de Janeiro amongst others. She taught at the Academy of Fine Art Baku, is co-founder and director of ALOV project Baku.
Residencies include five years with Poush, Trélèx in Switzerland, Proyecto ‘Ace Buenos Aires, Argentina, Despina Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Her work is to be found in the collections of The Modern Art Museum Baku, The Victoria & Albert Museum London, The University of Northampton UK & private collections worldwide.
CV
Divides her time between the UK & France
Education
2010 MA CAMBERWELL COLLEGE OF ART (London, UK)
2009 Postgraduate Diploma BYAM SHAW SCHOOL OF ART (London UK)
1991 BA GLASGOW SCHOOL OF ART (Glasgow, Scotland)
Solo Exhibitions
2023 Shifting Selves, IESA Gallery
2015 The (Dis-)appearing Woman, Museum of Modern Art, Baku, Azerbaijan, curated by Anastasia Blockhina
2010 Perceptions, MiM Centre of Contemporary Art, Baku, Azerbaijan, curated by Bahram Khalilov
2008 Metamorphosis, Sting, Stavanger, Norway
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026
The Thrill is Gone, Brief Shalimar, Espace Française, Paris curator Zahra Mansoor
1, 2 Trois Ciel, curated by Maria Ilbanez Iago at Julio Paris
Liturgie Chimérique, curators Chaltiel Attaly & Claire Cormier, Tectum Anima Paris.
Toutes les Choses Choses qu’elles Portent, Galerie des Photographes curator Katherina Holderegger
2025
The Thread that Pulls, National Gallery of Scotland, Edinburgh, Scotland
2025
This Year's Model III, Studio 1.1, London, UK
Dérive(s) Duwoshow Rift at Poush, Aubervilliers, curator Yvannoe Kruger
2024
Drawing at the Arctic Circle, Gallleri Napa, Rovaniemi Finland, curator Elisa Alaluusua
Quand la chrysalide s’éveille, Galerie Dauphine, Paris, curator Dayneris Brito
Transgraphisms, duo performance with David Bartholomeo à Poush, Aubervilliers
This Year’s Model, Studio 1.1, London, UK
2023
Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize, London & touring UK, awarded special commendation
ArtX93 Poush, Aubervilliers curated by ICART & Anaïs Montvecchi
Insights Inside, Annecy, France, Blossom Art Agency
2022
Dreams and Visions, Pakistan Art Forum, curated by Zara Saijid, Lahore, Pakistan
Wander Lines, Blossom Art Agency, Paris, France
A Cable I Have No Knife to Cut, curated by Alexandre Colliex, Poush Manifesto, Clichy, France
2020
This Year’s Model, Studio 1.1, London, UK
2018
‘Kif-Kif’ Exercises in reproducibility collaborative painting experiments with Nina Rodin
2017
Despina Residency Projects, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil curated by Raphael Fonseca
This Year’s Model, Studio 1.1 London, UK
2016
Editions, Tripp Gallery, London (collaboration with Nina Rodin)
Looking Up, Studio 1.1, London UK
Open Exhibition, Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, Scotland
Art Converters, Studio 1.1 London, UK
2014
This Year's Model, Studio 1.1, London UK
Art Converters, Studio 1.1, London, UK
Threadneedle Prize Exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
2013
Contemporary Miniature, European House, Baku, Azerbaijan
Caspiy, Caspian Biennale Convention, Centre of Contemporary Art, Baku, curated by Sabina Shikhlinskaya
2012
Variable Control/Control Variable collaborative painting experiment with Nina Rodin, MiM Centre for Contemporary Art, Baku
Visual Poetry, Kempinski, Baku, Azerbaijan, curated by Sabina Shikhlinskaya
2011
Control Condition, collaborative painting experiment with Nina Rodin at the Slade, London
2010
Precious Little, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, London, UK
WMD Weapons of Mass Destruction, MiM Centre of Contemporary Art, Baku, Azerbaijan, curated by Sabina Shikhlinskaya
2010 MA Fine Art Show, Camberwell College of Art, London AutoItalia, London
2009 Metamorphose, Islington Arts Factory, London
Within Limits, Kingsgate Gallery, London
2008 Over Easy, Lauderdale House, London
Other Professional Experience
2020 - present, Art in English classes for children
2011 – 2015 Commissions for Landmark I, ‘The Strength of Twelve Men’ 7 monumental paintings
Old Mill Café, site specific painting on wooden panels, 56 metres long x hauteur 30cm
Salo Restaurant, ‘It is not the sound of victory, it is not the sound of defeat, it is the sound of singing that I hear’; Vissi d’Arte; Norma I & II
2011 - 2012 Developed and lead workshops on contemporary art practice at the Baku State Fine Art Academy, Azerbaijan, with the British Council
2011 Curation of the Exhibition 'Inheritance' at the European House, Baku, Azerbaijan. An exhibition which explored notions of cultural heritage and inheritance in a post-soviet country. Works from Ujal Hagverdiyev, Elena Hagverdiyeva, Butunay Hagverdiyev and Huseyn Hagverdiyev were included in the show.
Awards
2025 - 2026 selected for the NMWA (National Museum of Women in the Arts) mentoring programme
2025 ADAGP archive grant recipient
2023 Trinity Buoy Wharf finalist & recipient of the special recommendation
2014 Threadneedle Prize finalist
2012 Short list Beers Lambert Award for Emerging Artists
Residencies
2020 - 2025 Artist in residence at Poush! Clichy & Aubervilliers, France
2014 Trelex Residency, Switzerland
2017 September - October Despina Residency, Brazil
2019 April, Proyecto ‘Ace, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Publications
CaucasusArtMag Issue 1, January 2013
Visual Artbeat magazine, September 2012
Marmite Painting Prize Catalogue 2010
Collections
Museum of Modern Art, Baku, Azerbaijan
Victoria and Albert Museum, Contemporary Textiles Archive, Public Collection
University of Northampton
