Introducing: Rachel Maxi
Foster/White is thrilled to announce that Seattle artist Rachel Maxi has joined our roster of artists! Recognized for her alchemy of materials and wide range of techniques distinguish one puzzle piece from the next, Maxi carefully crafts visual stories that tell of memory and place.
Rachel Maxi
Foster/White Gallery: Could you walk us through the key stages of your artistic process, from the initial concept to the final assemblage?
Rachel Maxi: A piece begins when I see something to build from. I experiment with paint and various materials, creating arrangements on a ledge in my studio. This is where the seed is planted for a new piece. A color combination or arrangement will catch my eye, and then I bring it over to a table and start adding pieces and playing with the arrangement. Due to the nature of the materials, they must lie flat on a table, much like a jigsaw puzzle. I use white foam core strips to crop the composition. I stand on a step stool to take a look and photograph it. This is an essential step because if the piece gets taken apart, I have a blueprint for how it goes back together. However, it also helps me view the image from a distance and gain a sense of where it wants to go. Often, I will take the picture to my Procreate app and make decisions about the next step. While I have limited knowledge and skill with this tool, and I use it rather crudely, it does help me imagine possible outcomes. Ultimately, the materials and what happens in the moment itself will guide my decisions. I love the surprise of not knowing where it will go or finding something I never would have expected.
Framing comes when I have determined the borders, which are never perfect squares or rectangles. This is a massive distinction from painting on a stretched canvas. Originating near the middle, they grow organically in size without the constraints of a set border.
Inside Rachel Maxi's studio.
F/WG: The shift from creating representational to abstract works is intriguing. In what ways, if any, does this foundation inform your compositional choices in the artwork you make today?
RM: The representational work exercised my mind in a different way. Because they were presented in a preset format, i.e., a canvas or panel, rectangle or square, I had to determine composition at the onset. Photography has always been such an excellent tool for that. You are always looking through a rectangle; it imposes a boundary, and boundaries can be liberating because they help you determine your next step. My new work does not have a predetermined boundary; it is not an image on canvas but a three-dimensional object, perhaps posing as a painting at times. I appreciate the concept of existing or being viewed from multiple perspectives or locations in time and space.
Elements of Maxi's work in progress.
F/WG: Are there particular artists or even broader creative figures whose work has significantly inspired your vision and approach? How have they shaped your perspective?
RM: Picking up where I left off, I recall being twenty years old when I saw a Deborah Butterfield horse at the Columbus Art Museum. I looked at the horse's mouth and saw its jaw and lip, as well as the actual material it was made from. I was just blown away by the fact that I was seeing both things simultaneously. The scrap metal from recognizable objects and the delicate rendering with the material said so beautifully, "I am also a horse."
It also draws inspiration from different time frames, including an old wheelbarrow, a swing set, and metal pieces that were once part of something with a distinct purpose, now transformed into a horse. I can see that progression: everything all at once.
Edward Hopper and James Turrell influenced my earlier figurative work due to the way they perceive light and use architecture to capture it. I liked Gerhard Richter because he did realism and abstraction, making it seem okay to do whatever I wanted. Picasso was also significant in this regard. Lee Bonticou is another important one; I loved her wall pieces made from old canvas and metal. Recently, I have been intrigued by Joan Mitchell and her expression of nature. I am also interested in architecture, both contemporary and ancient civilizations. And ancient and modern textiles, as well as ceramics.
My residency in Morocco in 2018 was filled with imagery that inspired my work, including vibrant colors, unique architecture, intricate textiles, and beautiful Arabic text.
I also draw a lot of inspiration from listening to music. I think about its structure, rhythm, repetition, and emotional impact.
A view from the street during Maxi’s residency in Morocco.
F/WG: The connection to place and nature is a recurring theme in your work. What does this relationship mean to you personally and artistically? What emotions or ideas do you hope to convey through this connection?
RM: Nature is where I find a connection to something bigger than myself. And that is a profoundly spiritual place to be. Walking through the rainforest among the ancient trees, I sense a deeply nourishing energy. I was brought up Catholic, and as a child, I was intrigued by the gold things, such as chalices and reliquaries, which held a remnant of cloth or hair from a saint. I also remember the Stations of the Cross on the walls of the dimly lit aisles, with their glowing gold halos; they seemed to be whispering to me from the sidelines. I never thought about this memory until I began using gold and metal leaf in my art. And like those halos, I enjoy the glimmer in my work when it is not directly lit. I like gold's mutability; it glows in indirect light, but it might look dark in direct light. Real gold is fascinating. It can be flattened to a size smaller than most viruses.
I want to convey a profound sense of being alive as a planetary being immersed in a natural world, taking the time to see the little things and our bigger connection to all of them and each other. I'm going for that elevation of nature and what is around us, the simple act of just being here. I want viewers to have their own experiences with the work; we all possess unique perspectives that shape our perceptions and sense of connection.
Materials to be incorporated in new works at the Joshua Tree studio.
F/WG: Your dedication to honing your craft through artist residencies is notable. Could you share some specific ways these experiences enhanced your practice and what key takeaways continue to influence your work today?
RM: The residency experience provided me an alternate environment to work in and new imagery that inspired my work. It also helped me to establish a more disciplined routine of walking every morning and working in the studio daily. I was able to escape my regular home life responsibilities and focus solely on the business at hand, identifying myself, first and foremost, as an artist.
The Morocco residency was especially stimulating in its total otherworldliness. The sounds of prayers, people in the street speaking in other languages, the colors, textiles, Arabic text. The call to prayer was such an atmospherically beautiful sound event.
The residencies that followed were in more isolated natural environments—wide open spaces in the American West, including beaches, deserts, and hills.
So, it was an interesting combination - from a very exotic and religious place with a call to prayer five times a day to wide-open spaces in nature. It manifested in the work.
A photo taken during Maxi's time in Morocco.
F/WG: What would you like people to know that might offer a new perspective on your work?
RM: Much of my early exposure to art came from my work in the field. One of my first jobs after college was as a crate builder for a gallery that represented Fluxus artists, including Yoko Ono and Nam June Paik. I worked at both the Seattle Art Museum and the Seattle Asian Art Museum as an art handler, preparator, and conservation technician, as well as at numerous other institutions. This experience allowed me to handle, pack, and get close to incredible works of art. In essence, that work was about building around something - creating a safe, negative space for a piece of art. So, it was a very intimate way to study such a wide variety of art. But also a way to learn to engineer, build, and study sculpture while simultaneously exposing oneself to a variety of art and antiquities.
Pieces on view in Maxi's studio.
Rachel Maxi's Temporal Reflections opens First Thursday, June 5 from 6 - 8 pm with the artist in attendance. The gallery will also host an artist talk on Saturday, June 7 at 2 pm. The event is free to attend and open to the public. View Maxi's complete collection of works below.