Jessica Locklar is an Atlanta-based visual artist, painter, educator, and tattoo artist whose emotionally charged figurative work explores identity, intimacy, vulnerability, and emotional transformation. Working across fine art, illustration, and tattooing, Locklar creates psychologically intimate imagery that balances softness, sensuality, melancholy, and expressive honesty.

Known for her emotionally resonant portraiture and what she describes as her “sexy sad girls,” Locklar’s paintings frequently examine themes of femininity, sexuality, healing, and subconscious emotional experience. Her work merges technical sensitivity with raw vulnerability, creating portraits that feel deeply personal while speaking to broader experiences of resilience, self-reflection, and human connection.

Locklar earned her MFA in Painting from Savannah College of Art and Design and also holds a degree from University of North Georgia. In addition to her studio practice and tattoo work under the name Jessica Doodles, she serves as Gallery Coordinator for Empire Arts Gallery, where she actively supports and collaborates with Atlanta’s contemporary arts community.