Jess Ackerman (b.1990) was born in Northern California and currently lives and works in Portland, Oregon. A self-taught multidisciplinary artist, Ackerman works primarily with acrylic paint on canvas while holding supplemental backgrounds in design, illustration, and ceramic work. Through vignettes of food-laiden tablescapes and richly colored vessels framed by vintage design motifs, Ackerman weaves memories of past selves with totems of nostalgia to touch notions of solitude, meditation, and nourishment of both body and mind.

With an air of playfulness and vibrancy, Jess Ackerman’s contemporary still life paintings explore the gravity and history of the commodities we surround ourselves with.

With an air of playfulness and vibrancy, Ackerman’s contemporary still life paintings explore the gravity and history of the commodities we surround ourselves with. For example, a cup on a table holds so much more than whatever liquid it contains, it carries with it the stories and memories of all that have touched it as it gets passed on through generations. In attending to the bigger lives of everyday objects, Ackerman opens questions of worth - from self-worth to the commodity of beauty - all the while embracing their presence by celebrating their often overlooked silliness and oddities.

Ackerman’s work has been exhibited extensively along the West Coast in venues across Portland, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. In 2023, they were invited to participate in The Jaunt, traveling to Denver, Colorado to produce an editioned screenprint while in residence. Ackerman is currently represented by Chefas Projects.

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