GRAPHIC
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ADAM is an exciting, independent artist / designer who came out of the graffiti-art movement of the eighties. His blend of modern art, and pop-culture with complex organic shapes make compelling works. An insight into Adam's back story can reveal how he has became driven and passionate to be an artist. Over the past 25 years his creative journey has been inspired by people, places, events and ideas. Adam's rich visual language is drawn from his surroundings of Melbourne culture and with his, do-it-yourself attitude aims to share the love and humour that only art can bring. |
"THIS IS NOT ART"
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"FOOD FOR THOUGHT"
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"TATTOO DESIGN"
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"STORM IN A TEA CUP"
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Artworks
Adam uses traditional techniques; watercolours, acrylics and ink to create his original designs. He also demonstrates his ability to evoke a sense of playfulness and gravity in a single work. His whimsical motifs, can be enjoyed for their simple beauty, or meditated upon, to conjure up deeper thoughts about our place in the universe.
"ON THE WINGS OF FANCY"
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"COFFEE CUP MANDALA"
" THE DAX CENTRE POSTER"
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"DA IMP"
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"GLASS HALF FULL"
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" WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS"
Homage to SEEN
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"TEA FOR TWO"
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"THE WAVE"
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"SATURDAY NIGHT"
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"SUNDAY MORNING"
"THE COW OVER THE MOON INCIDENT"
THE COW OVER THE MOON INCIDENT is a comical representation of a well-known nursery rhyme, stirring
both a sense of nostalgia through the visual representation of the song, and irony, through the playful title. |
"MARY BY ME"
homage to Mary Leunig
"Mary by me" (pictured above) is a homage Mary Leunig. A contemporary artist and illustrator Mary has published five of her drawing anthologies and held exhibitions of her drawings in Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra. Her artwork has been published in various newspapers and magazines including The Age, Nation Review, Meanjin, Heat Magazine, The Meatworkers Journal, Time, Penthouse, Der Rabe and AWU Magazine.
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Commissions.
Employment Futures, a job agency in Melbourne, commissioned Adam to design and paint a poster as pictured on the right. This design was to showcase the many career paths, one could take and to also show the multicultural aspects of Australian life. It featured at the front reception desk for several years, until the organisation amalgamated.
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"EMPLOYMENT FUTURES"
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Television advertisement.
This image was created for a television community service announcement "Change the colour of your day".
It was made at the Chocolate studios in South Melbourne during 2011. This advert, (Seen below) features Adam and was designed and made for a fundraising campaign for the Prahran Mission.
It was made at the Chocolate studios in South Melbourne during 2011. This advert, (Seen below) features Adam and was designed and made for a fundraising campaign for the Prahran Mission.
"EARS OF CLOTH" ( PART TWO )
"DAN THE MAN" acrylic on board
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"IMP" watercolour on paper
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C R Y L O N C O L O U R
"THE CRYLON BUTTERFLY' ink on paper
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"KOI MANDALA" Ink on paper
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"EXPLOSION" water colour & ink on paper
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"MENTAL HEALTH WEEK POSTER"
Skateboards 2015
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‘I am interested in making art to be experienced and explored by as many individuals as possible with as many individual ideas about the given piece with no final meaning attached. The viewer creates the reality, the meaning, the conception of the piece. I am merely a middleman, trying to bring ideas together.’ —Keith Haring, 1996
K Haring (1996). Keith Haring Journals. London: Fourth Estate, p. 13.
K Haring (1996). Keith Haring Journals. London: Fourth Estate, p. 13.
T-shirts, album art and skateboard graphics are often used by designers and illustrators. The Australian surf, skate and snow brand Volcom recently held a competition where one of Adam's designs won and was printed on a range of
t-shirts. The above painted decks are seen as a blank canvas for Adam. Historically, skateboard graphics have been a part of skateboarding since its inception. During the 1990s, a no holds-barred explosion of ideas were seen in brands like Real, Blind, and World Industries. These ideas defined the culture.
t-shirts. The above painted decks are seen as a blank canvas for Adam. Historically, skateboard graphics have been a part of skateboarding since its inception. During the 1990s, a no holds-barred explosion of ideas were seen in brands like Real, Blind, and World Industries. These ideas defined the culture.
"SUSTAINABILITY"
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"MAGAZINE DESIGN"
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"DEVINE DECADENCE"
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"THE ICE MAIDEN"
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"SPRING HAS SPRUNG" acrylic & ink
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"BEST WISHES" acrylic & ink
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"GILLS CAFE POSTER"
"EXHIBITION POSTER"
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"EMPLOYMENT FUTURES POSTER"
"POSTER DESIGN"
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Adam has many influences in art & design but has looked to cartoonist Robert Crumb, an American cartoonist and musician who often signs his work R. Crumb. His work displays a nostalgia for American folk culture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and satire of contemporary American culture. Vaughn Bode is another inspiration, an artist and illustrator known for his character Cheech Wizard and his artwork depicting voluptuous women. A contemporary of Ralph Bakshi, Bodē has been credited as an influence on Bakshi's animated films Wizards and The Lord of the Rings. Bodē has a huge following among graffiti artists, with his characters remaining a popular subject. The graffiti artist’s orbit was once visible on trains. Now trains are largely out of the equation and extremely difficult to obtain, it has now extended to worlds indoors such as, graphic design, illustration and onto gallery walls. Adam tends to favour simple colours and bold outlines, which pays homage to American subway artists like Dondi and SEEN.
BENALLA 2017
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"CHOCOLATE LANE EXHIBITION POSTER"
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To partly coincide with the 2017 'Wall to Wall' fringe festival in Benalla, Adam had a design show at the Chocolate Lane Cafe.
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All artworks are for sale. For commissions and enquiries regarding art sales, please use the 'contact page' located on this site.
© Copyright all rights reserved Adam Knapper.
© Copyright all rights reserved Adam Knapper.