The two artists come together in the exhibition, “Eye to Eye: Here’s Looking at You” opening Friday February 7th, 5:30 to 9pm in the Kortman Gallery in downtown Rockford.
“I look at the eye from the inside out,” said Franke. “Many people look into the eyes to see your soul, your essence…I’m using my eyes to see my world, and interpret my world.”
Frank, who lives near Egg Harbor, Wisconsin, creates quirky, eye-catching interactive sculptures and assemblages often with the eye as the focus of the piece.
It was former Rockford gallerist Charlene Berg who introduced David Franke to Norm Knott while visiting her Gallery X, now in Door County.
“She immediately saw not only the visual connection in our work, but also our like minded inspiration in our art,” said Knott. “Our work is very different, but their is a definite visual and spiritual connection with our art.”
It’s this connection that motivated Kortman Gallery director Doc Slafkosky to invite the artists to exhibit together in this two-person show.
“Eye to Eye” will feature Knott’s personal, wearable art along with his “Normaments,” a term Knott coined to describe his pieces that you could also refer to as “table jewelry.”
Franke will be exhibiting be small scale sculptural assemblages and mixed media works that he has become known for in the Door County art scene.
“Eye to Eye: Here’s Looking at You,” featuring the 3-Dimensional, and mixed media works by David Franke & Norm Knott opens First Friday, February 7th, with an artists’ reception from 5:30 to 9 pm in the Kortman Gallery, located upstairs at J. R. Kortman Center for Design, 107 North Main Street in Downtown Rockford. The exhibit will run through March 31st. For more information call 815-968-0123.