Jason Wheatley (aka Tikunkit) is a painter and storyteller whose work bridges the seen and unseen, blending magic realism with deep symbolic narratives. Born in 1973 in Salt Lake City, Utah, he has painted and drawn animals since childhood, using them as spirit guides to navigate the Aetherial realms. There, he encountered Tiku, a mystical monkey who became his mentor and companion, guiding him through the dreamscapes of his paintings.
Wheatley’s work blends realist precision with absurdist whimsy, filling each canvas with metaphor and riddles. His classically rendered oil paintings, created from both memory and life, possess an old-world craftsmanship infused with a contemporary sense of wit, folly, and surprise. His still lifes—rich with delightful oddities—invite viewers to decode their hidden narratives, transforming everyday objects into portals of mystery and revelation.
As part of the shaman’s journey, Wheatley laid to rest his given name and was reborn as Tikunkit, embracing art as alchemy—the transmutation of mind into vision. Now residing in Sweden, he continues to explore the liminal spaces between reality and dream, creating work that whispers to the subconscious and beckons viewers into realms of symbolism, transformation, and wonder.