​Artist's Statement: 

"Art is not always about what's pretty...or even socially acceptable. Art is about who we are, where we have been, the experiences we have been through, and how our lives have forever been affected and changed because of it. For these reasons, I believe art should always be an out of body experience. We must allow access to the deepest parts of ourselves - mind, body, heart and soul - for it is here only, the true intent of creativity can be found. It is a release, an expression of stifled emotion; it is an acknowledgement of who we really are - outside of what we allow the world to see." 

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From the Artist:​

I have been creating for as far back as I can remember. In fact, there are few memories I have of myself where I'm not wielding at the least - a Care Bears coloring book and a box of crayons. I love to create. I love the process of creating. 

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A couple of my favorite inspirational quotes:

'I will make everything around me beautiful. That will be my life.' - Elsie De Wolfe 

 'At the end of this life, when I stand before God, I would hope to not have a single bit of talent left & I could say unto Him...I used everything You gave me.' - Erma Bombeck

 

As for my work, I don't really have any set process or practices that are routinely incorporated into my pieces. Honestly, I don't even ever have any real plan or direction for any of the pieces I create. But instead, each is developed purely in that moment, based off of where I am and how I am feeling at that specific moment in time - mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I tend to be more of an intuitive processor. It is all about the internal connection between myself and that specific piece of work.  Therefore, I approach each piece individually, separate of all others - allowing myself the opportunity to capture bits of myself and my emotion by "feeling things out" as I go. Colors, Shapes, Materials, Patterns, Movement, Placement, Subject Matter...each decision deeply personal and often difficult to genuinely deduce to words that communicates wholly who I am in this world and who I am to the world around me. 

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​Moments throughout the course of my life have revealed to me that the world can sometimes be a dark and confusing place. Understanding ourselves, let alone the world around us and the entirety of its existence and its inhabitance...  My art has always served as a therapeutic outlet for myself, something I use to express things I would otherwise suppress, aiding in my ability to process and release things beyond my control - helping to bring a sense of peace and balance to my life. 

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With my art, the intent is to always resonate things of beauty back into the world around me to be shared with and by everyone. Such things as - strength, empowerment, authenticity, inner peace, personal growth, acceptance, understanding, forgiveness, redemption, kindness, beauty itself, love… I want my life and my life's work to erase even the tiniest portion of negativity from this world, and in its place forge a path of hope, and joy, and promise.  

 

                                                                                                                                           -Rachel Rice-Baham, Abstractionist & Collagist

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