Biography:

Rachel Simmons was born in Escondido, California, but moved with her family to Florida at the age of 5. She grew up in Port Tampa, the only daughter in a family of four sons. Rachel graduated from Rollins College in Winter Park, FL in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in Studio Art. She moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she completed her Masters in Fine Art at Louisiana State University in 1999. Rachel now teaches printmaking, painting, and drawing as an assistant professor of art at Rollins College and has been actively involved with community service projects in her courses. Her first solo show, "Subsurfaces: New Paintings," was held at Orlando City Hall in the spring of 2000. She has recently returned from an artists residency program in Miramonte, California. You can see her most recent work from this summer at http://www.lanset.com/rsimmons/studios/summer2002.html.

About My Work/ Statement by Rachel Simmons
I draw and paint from a growing collection of seed pods, eroded stones, rocks, and abandoned animal husks. These found organic objects undergo a transformation during a process of drawing, redrawing, and painting which lends them a new identity. Sometimes they become iconic, while other times they serve as shadowy components in a composition of suspended color and form.
When I make an image, I focus on form, color and space. I situate my chosen objects in an environment of intense heat or cold, with layers of shallow space between the object and the viewer. I am attracted to these found objects because of their interesting form, or because they fit into a larger pattern in nature. I have found that all objects, human-made and natural, seem to adhere to an innate structure or pattern that has evolved as consequence to their design. The regular and irregular hexagonal patterns found in my pieces reflect this fascination with natural and human-made structure, and how --incredibly so-- many similarities emerge between the two.

My work is a way for me to express my innately human connection to the structures and forms of the natural world using various techniques and materials. Whether I have a copper plate, a stretched canvas, or charcoal and paper in front of me, the image emerges as a comment on my place in this world of organic and human-made structures. Working in a variety of media keeps the imagery fresh for me, and allows me to find new facets in the same motif. I enjoy working within and outside of the boundaries of printmaking, painting, and drawing, Each discipline offers me so many possibilities for image-making through process and the constant discovery of new techniques.