Jas Knight: Painterly In Brooklyn
Photographs by Patrick Cline
Covering the northernmost tip of Brooklyn, Greenpoint is historically a Polish community. In fact, the history of the neighborhood is so strong that many of the current street names come from the families who originally farmed the land. In recent years, following the ascendency of its newly-trendy neighbor, Williamsburg, Greenpoint has become home to a rising number of small boutiques, cute cafes and a world of vintage shopping. And once a year, the neighborhood becomes a focal point of the New York interior design scene as it hosts the BKLYN Designs trade show, a showcase of Brooklyn’s most prolific makers, designers and artists.
Jas Knight, a Greenpoint-based painter, is swiftly gaining a reputation on social media for the haunting beauty of his work, the style of which evokes masters such as Henry Osawa Tanner, while turning a tender eye to the lives of contemporary Black life. The same eye for detail that sets his work apart also inspires him to love his Greenpoint neighborhood and the combination of cultures that it houses.
When asked what he enjoys most about his community, it doesn’t take Jas long to note his favorite part of the area. “I appreciate the fact that the area where I live is essentially the convergence of three neighborhoods — Williamsburg, Greenpoint, and Bushwhick — and possibly even four if you include lower Manhattan by way of a very short subway ride.”
Yet even as some of Brooklyn’s newest cultural trends come into conversation there, at times, stepping into Greenpoint feels like stepping back in time. The streets are lined with the engaging architecture of past decades, all bearing signs of the older Polish community that has lived in the area for generations.
“Many of the people living on my block have been here for over thirty years” Jas says, commenting on the culture of the community. “People are friendly and as a result you get a small town sort of feel even though you’re in the middle of New York city.”
As much as he enjoys the comforts of his neighborhood, the ease with which Jas can reach Manhattan, still the undisputed nerve center of the city, is a bonus of his location that isn’t lost on the artist, especially when he’s looking for inspiration. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art is My favorite place to go when I need to experience culture and be inspired,” Jas says. “The collection there is simply fantastic and it is housed in a gorgeous building.”
