“Temporary Glory” Lookbook
Set within the structure of the boxing ring, this lookbook frames the T-shirt inside a space defined by discipline, repetition, and endurance. The act of training becomes a parallel to the ideas within the work itself, where visibility, success, and recognition are earned through sustained effort, yet experienced only in fleeting moments. Each image captures the tension between preparation and performance, highlighting the labor that exists behind what is ultimately seen. The lookbook reflects on how moments of triumph are built through unseen persistence, reinforcing the transient nature of glory itself.
Thank you @devon_devoff__ and @fntxworld for photographing and providing the space for the lookbook to be created. Thank you to the models @austynonline , @ang3ye , @alexajablonski , @juliandrabik and @martinez_boxing . It’s been a dream of mine to create my own lookbook, so it means a lot!
JONATHON DOWNING @jonathondowning featured in our Midwest Issue # 179
The artists in this issue were selected by Stephanie Fox Knappe, PHD, Sanders Sosland Curator of Global Modern and Contemporary Art and Head of American Art at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art @nelsonatkins
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Applications are currently open for our upcoming 2026 West edition! Please tap the link in our bio to share your work with our engaged audience of collectors, curators, gallerists, and art-lovers.
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Opposites Attract
oil on cotton canvas, 30 x 24 inches
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“My portraits aim to be comprehensive representations of a singular character through the use of visual multiplicity. My process employs digital and physical processes as I utilize images from fashion lookbooks to create compositions in Photoshop, then render them in oil paint to depict the complexities of each subject.
Themes of my work include the juxtaposition of internal emotion and external image, the way that fashion and popular culture contribute to this dichotomy, measurements of success, idolization, and the idea of celebrity, wrapped up in layers of color and gloss varnish. I utilize my own personal experiences and interests, most prominently my love for Basketball. The themes in my work are shown through the lens of the Basketball fan, exploring their relationship to the athletes who become icons that are worshiped by millions of people. The characters I paint inhabit a unique world, where six eyes are something one is born with and the cracks in the mask they wear are as prominent as the beautiful image they show to the public.“
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#jonathondowning #stephaniefoxknappe #newamericanpaintings #napalum
“Temporary Glory” Commemorative T-Shirt
DTG Print on 100% Heavyweight Cotton
$40
Extending the imagery of the exhibition beyond the canvas, the accompanying t-shirt transforms moments of performance and observation into something wearable. The composition mirrors the layered nature of the work itself, where identity is captured, shared, and continuously reframed through screens and spectatorship. By placing these images on the body, the wearer becomes part of that cycle, as they are both subject and audience at once. This started out as just a t-shirt and a way to get creative within a different medium shirt reflects the blurred boundary between art, identity, and consumption within contemporary culture.
This is the other collectible accompanying my solo show “Temporary Glory” with @zepstergallery
“Temporary Glory” Commemorative Basketball
Pebbled Leather, Debossed Logo
Hand-Signed Edition of 8
$175
I think this may be the most creatively fulfilling item I have ever made. It’s literally a dream come true to have my own basketball, and it reaffirmed the idea that I can create anything I can imagine. Translating the visual language of the exhibition onto an object defined by motion and performance, the basketball becomes both artifact and instrument. Fragments of imagery wrap around its surface, one portrait per panel, echoing the cyclical nature of attention, repetition, and spectacle. An object meant to be handled, used, and circulated, the ball blurs the line between preservation and participation. It reflects on how moments of glory are not only witnessed, but continuously recreated through action, and mementos are displayed and treated as sacred objects.
This is the first collectible from “Temporary Glory” with @zepstergallery , and is available on the store in my bio.
“Double Vision Darling”
16” x 20”
Oil
The woman in this piece stares directly at the viewer, eight sets of eyes of varying color piercing straight through. Her red gloves engulf the two Lakers championship rings she wears. Her golden tiara shines brightly, representing the juxtaposition of career aspirations and the human desire for love. Streamers glow behind her, implying a party that she is the guest of honor at. Her gaze can be simultaneously seen as disinterest, deep thought, appreciation, and melancholy.
This piece will be on view with @bridgemogura and @one.smallgallery as part of their collaborative group exhibition “Gazed”, opening April 24th.
“Heiress to the Game”
24” x 36”
Oil on Canvas
Positioned between luxury and sport, this woman embodies a new kind of inheritance that is shaped not by tradition, but by image and influence. Symbols of status and competition are recontextualized, suggesting power that is both performed and possessed. Her gaze remains steady, asserting control within a space that has historically excluded her. This piece reflects on how identity is constructed at the intersection of aspiration, visibility, and access.
This piece will be on view with @zepstergallery as part of my new solo exhibition “Temporary Glory”, until April 26th.
“Safehouse”
48” x 60”
Oil on Canvas
Surrounded by softness and comfort, the couple in this painting retreat into a space that is quietly constructed as their sanctuary. Objects of innocence and nostalgia become a protective barrier, insulating them from something just beyond reach. Their closeness implies safety, yet their expressions hint at an underlying unease, as if the outside world is never fully shut out. This piece reflects on the fragile nature of security, and the ways we build environments to momentarily escape what persists.
This piece will be on view with @zepstergallery as part of my new solo exhibition “Temporary Glory”, until April 26th.
“Fab Four”
60” x 48”
Oil on Canvas
United in stance but divided in expression, each member of the “Fab Four” embodies a different relationship to identity, performance, and perception. Styled like a team yet disconnected in emotion, they reflect the tension between collective image and individual experience. From emotions of power to longing, symbols of strength, beauty, and admiration become layered with expectation, suggesting roles that are both chosen and imposed. This piece explores how unity can exist on the surface while team dynamics and the hierarchy of relationships unfold beneath.
This piece will be on view with @zepstergallery as part of my new solo exhibition “Temporary Glory”, until April 26th.
Basketball meets fine art
This is Jonathon Downing’s art show “Temporary Glory”and it’s on view at Zepster Gallery until April 26th
#basketballart #brooklynartshow #artandsports
“The Room that Remembers”
30” x 36”
Oil on Canvas
Surrounded by objects that carry both history and spectacle, the figure occupies a space where past and present collapse into one another. Symbols of achievement and cultural memory coexist, suggesting that identity is shaped as much by what is inherited as what is performed. The room itself feels aware, holding onto moments long after they have passed. This piece reflects on how environments absorb meaning, preserving traces of those who move through them.
This piece will be on view with @zepstergallery as part of my new solo exhibition “Temporary Glory”, until April 26th.
“XO”
24” x 24”
Oil on Canvas
Caught between playfulness and defiance, this woman performs for an unseen audience while maintaining a sense of control over how she is perceived. The setting suggests leisure and competition, yet her gesture disrupts any expectation of innocence or approachability. This tension between invitation and resistance reflects the complexity of visibility in a culture driven by attention. This piece explores how identity is both asserted and distorted in moments of performance.
This piece will be on view with @zepstergallery as part of my new solo exhibition “Temporary Glory”, until April 26th.
