ROBERT KNOKE

Robert Knoke, born in Hanover, Germany, splits his time between New York, Berlin and Paris. Since 1991 he has been developing a multimedia body of work using performance, photo collage, video installation and drawing. Since 2005, Knoke has gained worldwide recognition for The Portrait Series, an impressive series of black-and-white mixed media drawings featuring a range of subjects from musicians and artists to writers, actors and fashion icons, including a roster of some of the most influential people shaping contemporary culture: Debbie Harry, Casey Spooner, The Kills, Gossip, Michael Stipe, Patti Smith, Terence Koh, Lawrence Weiner, Gilbert & George, Olivier Zahm, Bret Easton Ellis, Matthew Stone, Leo Fitzpatrick, Rick Owens, Gareth Pugh, Marc Jacobs and Nicola Formichetti, among others.

Knoke’s work has been exhibited at galleries, cultural Institutions and club venues such as Artnews Projects and Apartment Gallery in Berlin, as well as Ruff Club, Seven and NP Contemporary Art Center in New York. He has also mounted site-specific installations at Face Gallery in Seoul and at The New Museum in New York in conjunction with the release of his first monograph titled Black Material. Recent solo exhibitions include shows at Teapot Gallery in Cologne and Envoy Enterprises in New York. 

Gossip, Fischerspooner, Diamanda Galás and The Kills have all incorporated Knoke’s portraits into their work.  

"The publishers of 00 gave me the opportunity to work on a publication that is more than just another catalogue of my work.  So, by showing three to five photos of the details of each drawing, always spread over two pages, the focus goes more towards the drawing itself than the subjects.  Each book comes with a t-shirt that is covered by a slipcase so you can put on your shelf like an object.  It's quite a luxury project."

ROBERT KNOKE