Mark Ryan Hackett, a Wichita Kansas based artist, graduated from Wichita State University with a bachelor’s degree in graphic design in 1996. Although working full time at Boeing, Mark focuses on his true passion… art.

Majoring in illustration, Mark’s main interests were pencil drawings, pen and ink, watercolor, and then eventually discovered making artworks on aluminum with a grinder. Starting out, he mainly grinded abstract pieces, until evolving into more realistic pieces, such as portraits.

Mark has been a featured artist twice at Exploration Place in Wichita Kansas and also was a featured artist at The Brickyard, Bella Luz, and the Wichita Boathouse for “Final Friday,” an art event for the final Friday of the month in downtown Wichita.

“I named my grind art business “REAIGE” after my Granddaughter. We lost her in a car accident on January 14, 2022. Her name was Reagan Paige. She was only 6 years old. Grief is love that you have inside you, that has nowhere to go. You never move on; you move with it. The love you had does not disappear, it transforms. You still find it in the warmth of old memories, the echoes of laughter, and in the silent moments where you still reach for what is no longer there. It is the deepest proof that love existed, that something beautiful once touched your life. No one can take away the memories, good feelings, and love that you carry inside. That’s yours for as long as you want to hold on to it. Some moments will bring unexpected sadness, while others will fill you with gratitude for the love you were lucky enough to experience. So, I put that love into my art and she inspires me to become better at it every day.”