Racquel Keller Interview
Racquel Keller | @racquelkellerart
Tell us a bit about yourself. Who you are, where you're from and what you do!
I’m an American artist based in Maryland, about half way between Washington, DC and Baltimore, Maryland. I am a multi-disciplinary artist but primarily focus on analog collage and assemblage.
How did you get your start as an artist?
I started drawing when I was very young, four or five years old, and continued through college. But there was no talk about how to support yourself as an artist when I was in school and so you were left to your own devices. So, after floundering for almost a decade, I took a bit of a detour and worked in a law firm for 15 years. But when I was in my early 40s, I stumbled across a series on public television that recounted the lives of contemporary artists. I had such an emotional response every time I watched an episode that it finally dawned on me that I was betraying myself by not pursuing my art. So, after about 6 months of trying to wrestle the idea to the ground on my own, I woke up one morning and confessed to my husband what I had been thinking about. He surprised me by saying “Ok, let’s make a plan.” And so the game was afoot and a plan was developed. I left the law firm in 2012 and have not looked back.
“I love having an idea and then suddenly seeing the thing I imagined sitting before me. It is like magic.”
What do you love most about what you do?
I think what I love most about what I do is bringing my vision to life. I love having an idea and then suddenly seeing the thing I imagined sitting before me. It is like magic. I approach painting very differently than collage. Collage is like a treasure hunt. Each image is a clue. You find the first one and that leads you to your next one, and so on and so forth. It is sort of like trying to put a puzzle together without having the cover of the box. For me, it is a much slower process than painting. It requires patience to wait for the right image to coax these seemingly disparate elements into a story.
When things get tough, where do you find the inspiration to keep moving forward?
What I do depends on what type of tough it is I am facing. I am a lifelong firestarter and have a history of pushing myself to really fan the flames. So, if I am working to get a show together, I have come to both hate and love that feeling of overwhelm that comes along with the process. I tend to initially shoot for the moon and make a big plan. Then as time collapses and the deadline is breathing down my neck, what is truly important becomes increasingly clear the closer I get to the end.
If I am just feeling a bit stalled, I may switch to a different medium. Or I may grab a pen, a pile of sticky notes, and just pick up one of my hundreds of books to peruse. As I flip through it, I listen to the little thoughts that pop into my head and capture those on the sticky notes.
Some of your work focuses on female archetypes -- can you share more about that?
While I do many types of work, I have recently been focusing on reframing and reclaiming the female narrative. I was at a residency in France and was perusing through a book looking for inspiration. The more I looked at the work in the book, the more irritated I became by how the women were portrayed and what I was taught in art history. The resulting work explores how fairy tales and myths capture our imaginations and set the expectations for gender roles in our society. Often the female figures in our fairy tales or myths are portrayed as either/or…distilled down to a simplified character. Often the female figures are portrayed as beautiful & passive, ugly & wicked, pure & good, or powerful & evil. My work explores how the male gaze in historical paintings continues to perpetuate these stereotypes and endeavors to reconstruct each work to reframe and reclaim the female narrative.
Can you share what inspires you to create a specific piece? Where do your ideas come from?
I am constantly seeking new inspiration, whether it is just walking around my yard or traveling to somewhere further afield. Seeing new things really feeds my creativity. Looking, coupled with emotions, is central to my inspiration. So an idea may present itself because I see something that makes me angry, or I may be disgusted by something, or I may have a funny thought pop into my head that makes me laugh. I listen to those little impulses, especially if it is something that my internal voice has some sort of visceral response to. So, if I have a thought that is immediately followed by another thought saying “You can’t do that!” That is when I know I have to stop and really consider the idea. I have come to realize that some of my best pieces come from quieting that lizard brain that is trying to keep things safe.
You work with multiple mediums -- how does painting or drawing inform your collage work?
Painting and drawing inform my collage work largely through color, composition, and technique. Although, that isn’t where the relationship ends. I often integrate painting and drawing into my collage work. I try to do it in a manner that seamlessly weaves it into the collage. My goal is to have people forget that it is a collage and get swept up in the story being told.
Any songs, albums or podcasts you keep on repeat as you work?
My taste runs the gamut. I listen to a lot of classical music, Edith Piaf, Billie Eilish, and Lily Allen. Sometimes I turn on the British Television Show “Time Team” and will look up when they discover something interesting. I also am trying to learn French, so I listen to French podcasts (Little Talk in Slow French is excellent!) But when I want the world to just drop away, I put on my sound spa and listen to the zen while I work.
How do you fuel for the day?
Coffee! Coffee! Coffee! But recently I have started folding in “GoldThread, Turmeric Radiance.” It is such a nice and bright tonic that it just puts me instantly in a good mood. I also do morning pages first thing in the morning. I have always dreamed a lot and the morning pages help to clear the deck of all the overnight detritus and help me set the intentions for the day.
“So, if I have a thought that is immediately followed by another thought saying “You can’t do that!” That is when I know I have to stop and really consider the idea.”
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Tell us about your vision for the future? Go big! We want to root you on!
Oooh, my vision for the future! I want to start working much larger! I currently work in pretty manageable sizes but I have dedicated a wall in my studio to start working large. And the big dream is to find a way to buy a small house in France that I can use as a home base while visiting Europe. The idea would be to have a studio space, visit museums, be able to share the goodness by offering artist retreats, and eat lots of baguettes! There will be a bumper sticker for my car that says “My other house is in France.”
Racquel Keller
Instagram: @racquelkellerart
Website: www.racquelkeller.com
