About
My work references the mystical aspects of nature, landscapes, and built environments. I am interested in how we inhabit and move in these spaces, and how we remember them—culturally, spiritually, and historically. I think too about emotional memory; how a place made us feel when we first encountered it, and the connections we bring to that experience.
My creative ritual begins with a morning walk. I think of myself as an explorer, collector, and synthesizer. Sometimes I collect physical things like little pieces of wood or rusty bits of metal, and other detritus. I note visual references, like seasonal colors and light, plants, birds, natural and urban landscapes and decay.
In the studio, I play with colors usually inspired by what I absorbed on my walk. For me studio time is a multidimensional, unconscious channeling of past and future into the present. It’s where everything intersects; memory and materials fuse with color and form. I have a shelf that runs the length of my studio. On it, I place pieces of found wood, painted panels , and partial constructions, and whatever other materials I might like to draw from. This is my play area and sketchbook where ideas and imagery take shape.
When I begin a piece, I generally don't follow a blueprint or plan, just a vague framework that allows for changes. I let the material tell me how it wants to go, feeling for the natural physical logic of things, and trying to always stay open to what is developing. There will be parts I like or dislike, and changing them affects the quality of the other parts. It's a constant balancing act. My use of found materials (or repurposed as art) are remnants of a specific place and time. Art making, for me, is a journal, a diary of personal and delicate temporal reflections. In the end, what I want to share with the viewer is an experience that they can enter from their own perspective — a memory, a mood, a place they have been, or one they may visit in the future.
Rachel Maxi works and lives in Seattle, Washington
You can follow Rachel Maxi and her eye on Instagram
CV
Education
Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH 1988
Exhibition History
Solo Shows:
2024 Vashon Center for the Arts Gallery, Vashon, WA
2022 i.e. Gallery, Edison, WA
2020 i.e. Gallery, Edison, WA
2019 Art X Agent, Waitsburg, WA
2018 Imogen Gallery, Astoria, WA
2016 Calypte, Seattle, WA
2014 Zinc Art, Seattle, WA
2013, Amo Art, Waitsburg, WA
2010 G. Gibson Gallery, Seattle, WA
2009 Grey Gallery, Seattle, WA
2008 Phyllis Stein, Los Angeles, CA
2008 Some Space, Seattle, WA
2006 Baas Gallery, Seattle, WA
2005 Marghitta Feldman Gallery, Portland, OR
Group Shows
2024 AMcE Creative Arts, “Embodiment”, Seattle, WA
2023 Foster White Gallery, Small Works, Seattle, WA
2023 Bainbridge Museum of Art, “Spotlight” Bainbridge, WA
2022 The En; Mt Analogue, curated by Chloe Dye Sherpe, Seattle WA
2021 Orcas Paley: Pocket Diety, Seattle, WA
2021 i.e. Gallery: Staff Picks, Edison, WA
2019 Orcas Paley: Weed Pot Show, Seattle, WA
2018 Studio e: One Room, in conjunction with Seattle Art Fair, Seattle, WA
2018 Studio e, gallery show, Seattle, WA
2018 Studio e, Pop up at Amandine Mezzanine, Seattle, WA
2016 Seattle Painting Now Survey curated by Matthew Offenbach, Seattle, WA
2015 Linda Hodges Gallery: On the Road, Seattle, WA
2013 Linda Hodges Gallery: Suburbia; Dream or Nightmare, Seattle, WA
2012 G. Gibson, Elles, Seattle, WA
2010 Seattle Art Museum: Urban, Seattle, WA
2007 Vermillion Gallery: Gathering, Seattle, WA
2007 Seattle Art Museum: Place, Seattle, WA
2004, City Space Gallery, Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs: Transition and Transformation, Seattle, WA
2004 City Space Gallery, Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs: Seattle’s Emerging Artists Roster, Seattle WA
2004 Tacoma Art Museum: Contemporary Artists Revisit Place and Memory, Tacoma, WA
2003 Davidson Gallery: Still Life Today, Seattle, WA
2000 Seattle Art Museum: 20001/2; Going Forward, Looking Back, Seattle, WA
Residencies, Awards and Publications
2023 Banibridge Island Art Museum, one painting selected for Spotlight juried exhibition, WA
2022 Jentel, 1 month, Banner, Wyoming
2021 Willapa Bay AIR; 1 month artist in residence Oysterville, WA
2021 Joshua Tree Highlands; 6 week solo Artist in Residence, Joshua Tree, CA
2020 PLAYA;1 month artist in residence, Summer Lake, OR,
2018 Green Olive Arts; 1 month artist in residence, Tetouan, Morocco
2020 Cascade Weekly, Stephen Hunter
2019 Waitsburg Times Review and Interview by Briana Wray
2018 Coast Radio Interview, Astoria, OR
2013 Purchase Award, City of Seattle
2010 Seattle Times, Michael Upchurch
2006 GAP Grant, Artist Trust, Seattle WA
2005 Purchase Award, City of Seattle, WA
2005 Seattle PI, Regina Hackett
2004 Tacoma Art Museum; Lewis and Clark Territory, Contemporary Artists Revisit Place and Memory
2004 Public Art Commission, Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs at the Seattle City Light Transfer Station, Seattle, WA
2002 Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs Emerging Public Artist Roster
2003 Purchase Award, City of Seattle, WA
2000 Seattle PI, Regina Hackett review 20001/2
