John A. Knudsen (February 3, 1938 - March 13, 2014) was an American artist and educator known for his advanced techniques in intaglio printmaking and exploration of color through large oil paintings that focused primarily on Chicago cityscapes. He was one of the founding professors of Harper College (also known as William Rainey Harper College) and developed the Fine Arts Department curriculum and direction.
Knudsen spent part of his upbringing in Brooklyn, New York; Michigan, and Chicago, Illinois. His father was a Lutheran minister. During high school, his family moved to the west side of Chicago in the Austin neighborhood where he later became the sole recipient in the city of a full scholarship to The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Ultimately, his father, Arthur Knudsen, encouraged him to attend Luther College in Iowa.
While at Luther College, Knudsen earned a BFA with a Major in Fine Arts and Minors in History and Secondary Education. One of Knudsen's professors was Orville Running, who would become a big influence on his work.
After Luther College, Knudsen attended the University of Iowa where he double majored in Painting and Printmaking with a minor in Art History. He was taught by world-renowned professors such as Eugene Ludins for painting and Mauricio Lasansky, the latter of which spurred Knudsen's interest in engraving. Knudsen graduated in 1962 with a Master of Fine Arts in Printmaking and Painting as well as a minor in Art History.
After graduate school, Knudsen worked as an elementary school art teacher from 1962 to 1963 at West Elementary School in New Canaan, Connecticut. In 1963, he returned to the Chicago area and taught art at Mount Prospect High School until 1967.
In 1967, Knudsen was one of the first professors hired to the newly established William Rainey Harper College. He proved instrumental in developing the college's first Fine Arts Program, working with William Foust, an art professor, in putting together the basic structure and curriculum of the program. Knudsen taught drawing, Design, Painting, Printmaking, and Life Drawing. He was also the co-head of the Fine Art Department from the start of the college in 1965 until 1972 with Foust. In the late 1960s, funding was provided to begin establishing the Harper College Art Collection. The goal was to improve the aesthetics of the building and to create a collection that would be added to through the years.
In 1974, Knudsen was awarded a sabbatical to study with Stanley William Hayter at Atelier 17 in Paris. Hayter's influence is seen in Knudsen's engravings starting in 1974. "In Praise of Architecture", engraved in 1974, represents his change in style toward more abstract and playful linear compositions.
Knudsen established the Illinois Print and Drawing Show to promote greater interest in fine art within the Harper College community. The show became a significant source of art acquisition for the college. In time, it quickly gained national interest and was renamed as the National Juried Art Exhibition: Small Works.
Another artistic influence for Knudsen were the rich natural dyes and textures of oriental rugs from countries like Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan.[9] He incorporated these elements into his cityscape paintings. Knudsen was a very active supporter of The Chicago Rug Society and in 1994 became the organization's president.
In 1998, Knudsen retired from Harper College to focus on his own artwork.
John A. Knudsen with one of his large oils.
In 1993, Knudsen opened his own gallery, The John A. Knudsen Workshop/Gallery, in Union Pier, Michigan. He produced woodcut prints primarily using themes from southwest Michigan and urban settings such as expressways and Chicago cityscape scenes. In addition he continued producing paintings and etchings. He would often use buildings and trucks of all sizes. The composition in both painting and printmaking was always bold, colorful, and congested with objects, people, buildings, and smoke covering the image area. At this time, Knudsen's woodcuts became heavily influenced by the German Expressionist movement Die Brücke which was popular in the 1930s.
Later in 2003, Knudsen opened another gallery at the Generation Gallery of the Featherbone Building in Three Oaks, Michigan. Here he explored oil and acrylic painting using very bold, bright colors in urban themes. “El People”, a large acrylic painting, is one example of this new direction in his artwork.
The John Knudsen Memorial Scholarship was established after his death in 2014 to provide financial assistance to Harper College students pursuing fine art.
In honor of his service to Harper College as well as his talent, the “John A. Knudsen: Retrospective” was given at the campus from August 31 to October 1, 2015. A wide variety of etchings, engravings, woodcuts, and paintings were displayed that demonstrated his varying style.
Longtime friend and colleague Evan Lindquist and his wife Sharon made a generous donation of artwork to the Bradbury Art Museum at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, Arkansas that prompted another retrospective of Knudsen's work. The show was held at the Bradbury Art Museum in the fall of 2016 and was entitled "Vicinity". It focused on etchings, lithographs, and silk screen prints of the Chicago cityscape.
In the fall of 2016, a one-man show retrospective was held at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois. Osvaldo Vena, professor emeritus, reviewed Knudsen's body of artwork and proposed a show that focused on religious themes that were present in many of his pieces. Knudsen's work was influenced by being raised in a family with a Lutheran minister as a father. He was also greatly influenced by Romanesque religious iconography.
Knudsen's cityscape paintings continue to be represented at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago by the Richard Norton Gallery. His printmaking work is represented by Thomas Cvikota of C. Editions. Cvikota was a former student and advocate for Knudsen's prints.
