Jayda Knight (Aka. Flying Knight) is a British-American artist redefining the boundaries of decorative art. With a degress in both Architecture & Fine arts from RISD, Knight transforms the language of historical ornament into a vehicle for urgent social discourse.
informed by a lifelong fascination with the decorative arts, Knight rejects the traditional notion of ornament as mere embellishment. Instead, she repurposes the aesthetics of historical wallpaper and pattern as a sophisticated vehicle for social discourse and contextual storytelling. By utilizing ornament as both metaphor and structural framework, she constructs narratives that respond to contemporary realms.
Knight’s work creates a deliberate tension between a playful, nostalgic surface and a darker psychological subtext, addressing societal, cultural, sexual, and personal themes through a surrealist lens. Often described as the “Historic-present,” Knight’s oeuvre invites the viewer to navigate the intentional contrast between the accessible beauty of the pattern and the challenging narratives hidden within.
Knight’s conceptual framework extends into public art through monumental site-specific interventions. This is perhaps best exemplified by her 2020 Lincoln Road windows (Miami Beach), where she transformed 24 vacant storefronts with unique wallpaper installations, turning the liminal spaces of the pandemic into a platform for visual storytelling. Her commitment to documenting social histories is further seen in her Miami Beach street art collages, which utilize ornamental motifs to honor the drag culture of Miami-Dade. Knight’s work is represented in private and permanent collections, including the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Museum and the Coral Gables Museum.
Knight has collaborated with several institutions including the Miami City Ballet, Oolite Arts, Lincoln Road Improvement District and Timeout; she is a grant recipient from Gottlieb Foundation and the Miami-Dade Department of Cultural Affairs.