July 2006: Elissa Knoper paintings

Elissa Knoper's paintings have evolved into small figurative paintings with a narrative twist.  Her images come from an array of dreams, the weirdness and quirkiness of everyday life.  The characters in her paintings, both human and animal, are not actual beings, but creatures of her imagination.  She is fascinated by circus performers, religious imagery and mythology. Knoper gives the hint of a start of a story but doesn't reveal the whole plot. Her paintings are serious with a humorous twist.  There are references to human relationship with nature; what happens is an unsettling tragicomedy, subtlety ambiguous and melodramatic.  In these days of digital imagery, Elissa intent is on making paintings that feel, look and smell like they've just been painted.