Rachel Hellmann

Region: Midwest

I come from a family of carpenters. My early education as an artist taught me the care of craft, love of tools, and pride in working with my hands. This history led to my interest in creating paintings that function as objects and that occupy space in a physical way.

My work explores how perception is affected by the interplay of geometry, light, and color. Influenced by folded art forms such as kites, paper airplanes, and origami, I paint on shaped forms to instill a sense of play and to suggest the experience of an interior architectural space. I construct my paintings by gluing, sanding, and joining poplar boards. I then piece together the segments and paint them with bands and flat shapes of color. The geometric language and linear repetitions in the painting echo the methodical and laborious process I use to create it. The sculptural form, combined with both subtle and vibrant color, creates a vibration between the logical and the unexpected.