About the Artist

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About the Artist

As a contemporary successor to Abstract Expressionism, Jumper Maybach is a contemporary abstract artist operating within the great American tradition of spontaneous abstraction while extending it into a fully articulated, internationally recognised cultural practice. His paintings embody the incendiary physicality and emotional velocity that defined the movement, yet they are unmistakably rooted in the present—born from lived experience, trauma, healing, and an unwavering belief in transformation. Critics, curators, and collecting institutions have noted the explosive energy and psychological depth of his work, with Art Dubai dubbing him “The 21st Century Jackson Pollock,” a distinction that has followed his practice across international exhibitions and museum contexts.

Works such as Can’t Fix Stupid, Jumper’s Hug Constellation, and The Cotton Candy Series exemplify the spontaneity, frenetic joy, and subversive messaging that distinguish Maybach’s visual language. Childlike marks, saturated color, and gestural force collide with sophisticated social commentary, creating paintings that are at once instinctive and intentional. This duality—beauty and rupture, playfulness and gravity—anchors his position within the lineage of American abstraction while asserting a voice that is singularly his own.

Jumper Maybach’s canvases frequently explore political and cultural themes through organic, improvisational form. At times the message unfolds slowly, embedded beneath layers of color and movement; at others it is deliberately exposed, creating tension between abstraction and literal meaning. This oscillation reflects the multiplicity of Maybach’s personas and the complexity of the world he interrogates—where meaning is never fixed, and truth often resides in contradiction.

Born Ben Workman in 1963, Maybach’s artistic identity was forged in the adversity of a socially fraught childhood in Corpus Christi, Texas. Early experiences of marginalization and trauma shaped a deep understanding of resilience, self-worth, and survival—cornerstones that remain acutely perceptible in his work today. His compositions, often described as chaotic at first glance, resolve into worlds of emotional coherence, inviting viewers into a space of healing through intuition, playfulness, and childlike wonder.

At the center of this vision is faith. Jumper Maybach openly affirms his belief in Jesus Christ, grounding his practice in the conviction that light ultimately prevails over darkness. His work seeks to dismantle hate, bullying, and intolerance by revealing the enduring power of love, peace, and unity. In an era oversaturated with division and noise, his abstractions strip away excess to reveal clarity—reminding viewers that compassion is both a divine mandate and a social necessity.

Every painting by Maybach carries intention. Advocacy is not an accessory to the work but integral to its creation. The physical act of transforming raw pigment into expressive form mirrors the spiritual transformation he believes faith makes possible. Trauma, in his philosophy, is not an endpoint but a catalyst—capable of being transmuted into strength, healing, and testimony.

Having endured harassment and abuse related to his sexual orientation, Ben Workman experienced a defining rebirth in 2010, emerging publicly as Jumper Maybach. This metamorphosis marked more than a change of name; it signaled a commitment to live as an instrument of Christ’s love and to use art as a vehicle for reconciliation. His practice stands as lived testimony—art not merely created, but embodied.

Maybach’s philanthropy reflects this conviction. Over the years, he has supported organizations including GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, the Matthew Shepard Foundation, AIDS Foundation Houston, The Montrose Center, and The Trevor Project. In response to increasing polarization and public discourse surrounding faith and identity, he conducts annual personal reviews of all organizations he supports to ensure none tolerate or promote hate speech against any community. Supporting hate—whether directed at Christians, Jews, Muslims, LGBT persons, or others—is incompatible with his mission. Love, in his view, cannot be selective.

This vigilance reinforces the integrity of his philanthropy and amplifies the guiding principle of his life’s work: hatred is not defeated through silence, but through principled advocacy for peace, love, and light.

Jumper Maybach’s work has been exhibited internationally, including presentations associated with the Venice Biennale, the Louvre in Paris, and exhibitions across Dubai, Vienna, Barcelona, and The Netherlands, positioning his practice within a global contemporary art dialogue. His work has been formally inducted into recognised cultural museums, including the Museo Nazionale di Villa Pisani, Stra, Venice, Italy; the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Richmond, Virginia; and the Museum of the Americas, Doral, Florida. His paintings reside in private collections, corporate environments, and recognised museum holdings worldwide, underscoring the institutional relevance and curatorial durability of his work. He has been honoured as the Official Artist of Pride in Houston, Texas, and Richmond, Virginia, and his acclaimed Pride Series has been exhibited nationally and internationally.

While his artistic practice has expanded into a broader luxury ecosystem—encompassing fine-art editions, design objects, and curated products—the paintings remain the nucleus of the Jumper Maybach universe, ensuring that all extensions remain anchored in authorship, artistic integrity, and provenance. Each extension is architected to preserve authorship, provenance, and meaning. This is not art adapted to branding, but a brand architected around art, authorship, and long-term cultural relevance.

Jumper Maybach is the artist living the art—a practice defined by faith, resilience, disciplined authorship, and an uncompromising commitment to transforming darkness into light, positioned for enduring relevance within museum, institutional, and international curatorial frameworks.

Selected Museum Inductions

Jumper Maybach’s work has been formally inducted into recognized cultural museums, affirming its curatorial significance and long-term institutional value:

• Museo Nazionale di Villa Pisani, Stra, Venice, Italy — National Museum induction, including Venice Starburst (2014), curated by Dr. Bruno Francisci
• Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Richmond, Virginia — Permanent collection inductions including Virginia Pride #1 and Virginia Pride #2 (2018–2019)
• Museum of the Americas, Doral, Florida — Institutional acquisition under the directorship of Dr. Raúl Oyuela (2015)

These inductions position Maybach’s practice within an established international museum context, underscoring its relevance beyond exhibition cycles and market trends.

Highlights and Exhibitions

Upcoming Shows

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  Selected Museum Collections

  • 2019 Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Richmond, VA – Adam Scher, Vice President of Collections
  • 2018 Virginia Museum of History & Culture – Titled “Virginia Pride #1 & Virginia Pride 2” Induction
  • 2015 Museum of the Americas, Doral, FL - Dr. Raul Oyuela, Director
  • 2014 Jumper Maybach Italia, Museo Nazionale Villa Pisani, Venice, Italy (curated by Dr. Bruno Francisci)
  • 2014 Museo Nazionale di Villa Pisani – Titled “Venice Starburst” Induction

  Awards

  • Official Artist Houston LGBT Pride Ruby 40th Anniversary – Houston, Texas 2018
  • Official Visiting Artist Virginia LGBT Pride Festival – Richmond, Virginia - 2018
  • Artistic Merit Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts – Museo Nazionale di Villa Pisani in Stra, Venice, Italy – June 26th, 2014

  Selected Solo Exhibitions

  • October 8, 2022 - Jumper Maybach Open Studio
  • November 12, 2022 - Jumper Maybach Open Studio
  • November 29 - December 4, 2022 - Scope Miami 2022
  • December 10, 2022 - Jumper Maybach Open Studio
  • 2020 Abstract Series, Michele Rosen Art, Los Angeles, CA
  • 2019 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Ocean Galleries, Avalon, NJ
  • 2019 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Ocean Galleries, Stone Harbor, NJ
  • 2019 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Wentworth, McLean, VA
  • 2019 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Wentworth, Atlanta, GA
  • 2018 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Chasen Galleries, Richmond, Virginia
  • 2018 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Mary Hong Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee
  • 2018 Pride Series: INTROSPECTION, Meyer Fine Art, San Diego, California
  • 2017 Jumper Maybach, Numbers, Houston, Texas
  • 2017 Jumper Maybach VIP, Artopia, Winter Street Studios, Houston, Texas
  • 2016 Jumper’s Cotton Candy, MATCH Theater, Houston, Texas
  • 2016 From Darkness to Light, MATCH Theater, Houston, Texas
  • 2015 Jumper Maybach VIP, Artopia, Winter Street Studios, Houston, Texas
  • 2013 Jumper Goes Hollywood, Aurora Street Studios, Houston, Texas
  • 2013 Clownoween, Heights Art Studios, Houston, Texas

  Selected Collaborative Projects

  • 2013 From Dubai to California, Jumper Maybach & Pepe Serna Traveling Exhibition, Heights Art Studios, Houston, Texas (in collaboration with Pepe Serna)
  • 2013 From Dubai to California, Jumper Maybach & Pepe Serna Traveling Exhibition, Los Angeles, California (in collaboration with Pepe Serna)
  • 2013 Beverly Hills Art Award, Museum of the Americas, Los Angeles, California (in collaboration with Pepe Serna)

  Selected Group Exhibitions

  • 2024 CH-CH-Changes: Sabine Street Artists, Curated by Kelly Best Bourgeois, August 8th-October 19, 2024
  • 2022 Hot Topics: Sabine Street Exhibition, August 7th thru September 21st, 2022
  • 2022 Growing Pleasures Exhibition, July 7th, 2022, thru August 1st, 2022
  • 2022 Moving Forward, March 24th, 2022, thru April 28th, 2022
  • 2019 Our Authentic Selves, November 9th, 2019
  • 2019 Abundance: A Sabine Street Exhibition
  • 2018 Habitats – Artwork by Sabine Street Artists, September 8th, 2018
  • 2016 Celebration Seabrook, Sea of Art Walk, Seabrook, Texas
  • 2016 San Antonio Q Fest, San Antonio, Texas
  • 2016 Chocolate and Art, Spring Street Studios, Houston, Texas
  • 2015 Contemporary International Artists, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris, France (catalog)
  • 2014 Art in Centro, Bergamo, Italy
  • 2014 Art Dubai 2014 Alliance Francaise, Madinat
    Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE
  • 2014 Vienna Travel Gallery, Vienna, Austria
  • 2013 Gallery Kunst aan de Kade, Delft, Netherland
  • 2013 Chateau de l’Epinay, Dolus le Sec, France
  • 2013 Jumper Maybach Roadshow, Col.legi Metges de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
  • 2013 Art Dubai 2013 International Fair, Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE (catalog)

  Art Fairs

  • 2024 Hampton Fine Art Fair, Southampton, New York
  • 2024 Art Wynwood Winter Fair, Miami, FL
  • 2023 Art Miami Red Dot, Miami, FL
  • 2023 Hampton Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY
  • 2022 Art Miami Red Dot, Miami, FL
  • 2022 ArtExpo Dallas, Dallas, TX
  • 2022 Hampton Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY
  • 2021 Art Miami Spectrum, Miami, FL