AMoCA Collection | Dots and Loops, silk, vinyl, paint and dye, 68” x 55” x 2”, 2003
RAIR | 2002-03 (see also 2014-15)
Rachel Hayes | Tulsa, OK
Rachel Hayes was born and raised near Kansas City, MO. Her installation- based work has been exhibited extensively at venues such as Sculpture Center, NY, Nerman Museum, KS, and in Lower Manhattan with BravinLee Programs, NYC. She has attended numerous residencies including the Marie Walsh Sharpe Space Program, NY; the RAiR Program (2002-3) in NM; the Sculpture Space Residency, NY; and the Art Omi International Artists' Residency, NY. Hayes is the recipient of the Augustus Saint-Gaudens Memorial Fellowship in Sculpture, a Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Professional Fellowship in Sculpture, Virginia Commission for the Arts Fellowship in Sculpture, and a Charlotte Street Fund Award. She received a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University. (Bio from RAiR 50th Anniversary catalog, 2017).
Rachel currently lives in Tulsa, OK
"Upon entering a room full of my work, one might first notice color, scale and stry alette consists of various manufactured transparent fabrics and translucent plastic vinyls which I layer on top of one another, resulting in the creation of new colors. The top layer of material masks, consumes or transforms the underlying materials, changing their original properties. It has been suggested that I use the tactic of bait and switch, luring the viewer with visceral color and sensuous materials while introducing other issues to ponder. These works are not only color studies - the material itself has a rich history and suggestive nature which I capitalize on. The fabrics and vinyls are not only objects with boundless properties for manipulation, but also signifiers of gender, fashion, decoration, gesture, etc. For example, the vinyl may be seen as 'sexy' while the transparent fabrics are more 'passive' or feminine. I manipulate these materials, considering their suggestive nature and nuance, while also concentrating on painterly and sculptural concerns such as form, line, color, space, surface and texture. The work often takes on a large scale, creating tension between the sewn, somewhat delicate materials associated with 'women's work', and the aggressive architectural context more commonly associated with 'masculine modern art'."
Roswell Museum and Art Center
Rair exhibition • Rachel Hayes • September 20 - October 19, 2003
