Work in progress · Seattle Prize
The Comeback
Jan 2026
This painting is my second project I am working on as part of the Seattle Prize. The composition shows an MMA fighter, battered and bruise from a grueling fight that wasn't going his way, emerging triumphantly from the chaos and and celebrating his own perseverance. It's a testament to resiliency and toughness—both values that I would like me art to reinforce as part of our Rehumanist mission. The painting is still in it's early stages but with this being a smaller work, I think the progress will advance quickly.
2 posts and 4 photos from the studio, in the order Jackson made them.
Follow the making ↓The process
From first sketch to finished painting.
First post · January 1, 2026
Happy New Year! I enjoyed a very restful break back home in Chicago over the holidays and have returned to the studio ripping or roaring to get back at my easel. My mermaid painting is in its later stages, but there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done before I cross the finish line. The adjustments I was making before some time away were getting tedious, and I figured it might be a good time to start another canvas. Here I am applying a grid to the panel so I can accurately and efficiently transfer a drawing onto the surface based on my reference. This painting is going to be a serious departure from the underwater mermaids I have been working on, so stay tuned!
Latest · January 20, 2026
While I’m in the finishing stages of my larger Allegory of Curiosity painting, I felt it was important to begin a second project. The attached images show the early progress of this new work. This painting represents a clear departure from the smooth, brightly colored, and deliberately saccharine tone of my mermaid composition. Instead, this Mixed Martial Arts scene leans into something far more raw, emotionally charged, chaotic, fresh, direct, and physical. I’m interested in being an artist who can move fluently between different modes: from the sweet, allegorical, and symbolic, to work that is grounded in real experience and tethered to my actual interests. Although this MMA scene is also invented, it draws directly from my personal observations, and I’m excited to discover how the composition, narrative, and paint handling will ultimately resolve. As a counterpoint to the mermaids painting, this work broadens the emotional and formal range of the fellowship’s portfolio and contributes to the sense of variety and ambition that we are hoping to cultivate.
