Brad Pitt is a big fan, but Archibald Knox remains largely unknown outside his native Isle of Man. Now, a landmark exhibition is out to right that wrong.
When I mention the name Archibald Knox, I’m often met with blank stares. Yet this Manx-born artist and designer, who lived from 1864 to 1933, has a legion of admirers across the globe and is one of the most significant figures in design history.
Born on the Isle of Man, a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the middle of the Irish Sea, Knox was a designer, artist and teacher whose work bridged the Arts and Crafts Movement, Celtic Revival, Art Nouveau and Modernism. Seen as a leading figure of the Modern Style movement, his fluid designs—which brilliantly merged Celtic revival with Art Nouveau sensibilities—made him the go-to designer for Liberty of London’s metalwork.
“There’s this amazing fluidity to his work,” enthuses present-day Manx artist Nicola Dixon, whose own Celtic-inspired artwork shows Knox’s influence. “His designs have this incredible flowing-line quality that almost seems to be alive. It’s not quite the rigid, locked-down geometry you see in ancient Celtic art; Knox started to unravel and modernise those ancient styles.”
Knox created around 80% of Liberty’s silverware during its heyday, helping to define what became known across Europe as the ‘Liberty style’. Yet he received very little recognition during his lifetime.
Liberty had a policy of anonymity for its designers, so his name was rarely attached to his creations. Knox himself was a private person, so the arrangement suited both parties. Many of his other works went uncredited, and many were lost or destroyed.
From the 1960s onwards, though, the art world began to rediscover and celebrate Knox’s work, and today it’s highly collectable. Hollywood star Brad Pitt is a keen admirer and has been amassing a collection since the 1990s, including one piece valued at $500,000. He even named his youngster son Knox Léon Jolie-Pitt (although the fact that Knox was his granddad’s middle name may have influenced that, too).
Now, in 2025, we can all get a taste of what Brad’s been enjoying as the largest-ever exhibition of Knox’s work opens at the Manx Museum in the island’s capital, Douglas. When the opportunity arose to visit the show, which features over 200 pieces, including silverware, paintings, furniture and more, I jumped at the chance. With a passing familiarity with Knox’s work but eager to learn more, I wanted to understand why this Victorian polymath deserved wider recognition and how the museum had approached the challenge of bringing his legacy to life.
A vibrant space
Walking into the National Art Gallery at the Manx Museum, I was immediately struck by the vibrancy of the space: something I hadn’t been expecting. Rather than the sombre, muted tones you’d expect for a Victorian designer, the gallery walls were painted a rich green that made the silver pieces positively gleam. Elsewhere, purple banners added a contemporary pop of colour that drew me in before I’d even started exploring the exhibits.
“We wanted it to be a bit more of a fresh take on previous exhibitions in the past; a bit more modern, but still very relevant,” Christine Gleave, lead designer at Manx National Heritage, tells me. “It would have been so easy to have done silver on black, but I wanted it to really stand out as you were passing by, and the purple is the colour of Manx heather. That links into Knox’s love of the environment and how he used the colours of nature in his artwork.”
This connection to the Manx landscape runs deep through his work. Born in Tromode, a small village not far from Douglas, Knox was profoundly influenced by his surroundings—from the ancient Celtic and Norse stones, with their intricate carvings, to the sweeping landscapes and changeable weather. Even when he moved to England in 1897 to work with the influential designer Christopher Dresser and later as a teacher at Kingston School of Art, his island home remained his wellspring of inspiration.
“As a Manx artist myself, I understand that connection to the island’s landscape,” reflects Nicola, who’s spent over three decades studying Knox’s work. “When you internalise the natural curves and lines of the Manx coastline and hills, they become part of your artistic language. Knox’s work has that perfect ergonomic quality—as the yacht designer William Fife once said, ‘If it looks right, it is right.’ That’s exactly what Knox achieved with his flowing Celtic designs.”
The exhibition beautifully showcases this connection to nature. One particularly striking feature is an AI-generated animation that brings one of Knox’s landscape paintings to life. “Archibald Knox is known as ‘The man who could paint the wind’, so that sparked the idea,” says Christine. I also wanted to bring in something that was a bit more dynamic in a gallery of static objects.”
Personally, I found the effect mesmerising. Clouds drift across a Manx landscape, waters ripple, and you get a sense of Knox’s remarkable ability to capture the island’s atmospheric conditions. It’s a subtle but effective use of modern tech that helps visitors connect with the artist’s vision.
A master across mediums
As you move through the exhibition, it becomes clear just how versatile Knox was. His Liberty metalwork—from elegant silver vases to ornate jewellery—shows his mastery of the Cymric style (Liberty’s Celtic-inspired silver line). But he was equally adept at watercolours, furniture design, and even gravestones and war memorials.
Some of the most fascinating pieces are his illuminated manuscripts, including ‘The Deer’s Cry’, which showcases his extraordinary skill with Celtic knot work and lettering. But rather than copying the rigid, tightly geometric patterns found on ancient Manx crosses, Knox’s genius was reinventing these designs, giving them a more flowing, organic quality.
“When I first discovered Knox’s work with Celtic interlace, particularly ‘The Deer’s Cry,’ it completely transformed my own artistic practice,” Nicola reveals. “There’s something almost spiritual about working with these Celtic designs. I spent months developing triple spiral motifs inspired by Knox’s approach, and when I exhibited them, people had powerful reactions. One woman said she was getting visions from the artwork. It’s like they have an energy that goes beyond just the visual—they almost hum with a presence.”
One of the big reasons Knox has become such a revered figure is the way he took ancient motifs and reimagined them for the modern world. In the process, he created pieces that still look remarkably contemporary over a century on.
Care and attention
Such great work requires great presentation. Thankfully, the museum team has clearly put serious thought into making it all work, and it does beautifully. For instance, throughout the exhibition, subtle design touches reference Knox’s work without overwhelming it. If you look closely, for instance, you’ll notice little bird motifs that change in each zone of the gallery. This references Knox’s use of our feathered friends to represent community and conversation. In the main, though, the design of the information panels is deliberately pared back to let the work shine.
Take, for instance, typography. Despite Knox having created his own distinctive lettering style, Christine made the bold decision not to imitate it. “We decided to pick up more on the Liberty style,” says Christine. “As Knox’s designs and his typography are there as exhibits, I wouldn’t want to do a poor imitation of either.”
Ongoing influence
Importantly, Knox: Order & Beauty positions the artist and designer not just as a historical figure but as an ongoing influence. Running until March 2026, the exhibition is part of a broader effort to associate Knox firmly with the Isle of Man, much as Charles Rennie Mackintosh is associated with Glasgow, J.M.W. Turner is linked with Margate, or William Morris is connected with Walthamstow.
The exhibition will also spawn educational resources for local schools, special trails for different age groups, and a series of walks around the island that follow in Knox’s footsteps. Interestingly, Liberty itself is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year with new Tana Lawn prints inspired by Knox’s designs.
“Knox’s work continues to inspire contemporary artists on the island today,” Nicola notes. “I’ve been commissioned myself to create public art installations based on Celtic designs for Douglas Promenade and Peel Cathedral, and I’m currently working on designs for the Knox Garden on the promenade. His influence is everywhere here, even in local schools where children study my work, which evolved from studying his. It creates this beautiful continuity of Manx artistic tradition.”
Artwork by Nicola Dixon for the Matt Creer album Leeward Tide
Nicola, in front of a commission for Manannan Court, Douglas
Screens by Nicola in Peel Market Place based on The Deer’s Cry
One of Nicola’s interlace panels used for cushions and throws
Each Day is a Journey by Nicola Dixon
As for us ‘mainlanders’, I’d say the Manx Museum has done a remarkable job of bringing Knox’s work to a new audience. With its thoughtful curation, contemporary design touches and innovative use of tech, Knox: Order & Beauty makes a compelling case for Archibald Knox as one of the most important, albeit unsung, designers of his era.
If you’ve never had a reason to visit this fascinating and friendly island nation, with its natural beauty, unique spirit, and culture, you do now.