“I have always been in love with painting. From an early age, I knew there was something magical about representing a subject using colour and line, and most importantly, it’s always made me feel good. I loved painting at school and took Art as an A-level, followed by an Art Foundation course and moved on to study Painting and Drawing at Art School. I can happily say that I still get the same thrill when I begin a painting at 37 as I did when I was 9 years old.
I’m fascinated by the shapes and colours of grasses, flowers and trees and of how they change with the landscape through the seasons. I love to be out when the sun is low or when the sky is bright and clear, and the light is at its most magical. It’s these moments, when the beauty of the landscape is lifted, that I’m trying to capture and share with others.
I follow my gut when it comes to colour and composition, which are of course very important elements in my paintings. I enjoy experimenting with the way that I apply the paint to the canvas or paper so that it reflects what I am representing – water should be fluid, flowers delicate and tree trunks solid. How I achieve this is forever changing and adapting as I find new ways of applying paint, which is why my style is always evolving and continues to excite me.
Over the years, I’ve learnt to avoid overthinking my work. I’m much more of a ‘get on with it / in the moment’ type of person rather than one for procrastination. I’ve let go of what I thought I ‘should’ be painting and have allowed my feelings to take control, freeing myself from all of the needless detail. When I paint, my heart races; it’s instinctive, immediate and exciting.
On reflection, I’ve come to realise that the paintings are my attempt to unburden the weight of the world from my shoulders. My paintings are my windows away from the distractions of noise, stress and the chaos of life, they allow me to appreciate what is around us for what it is. They express how uplifted I feel when I catch the warmth of the first daffodil re-awakening after the longest of cold winters; how in-awe I am of the vast golden barley fields beneath dark moody skies; my delight at seeing a flickering light dancing through the leaves, filling a forest with magical energy; and the feeling on an empty beach, of being mesmerised by the unfaltering pull of the tide against my legs.
I hope that when others see my paintings they too can be transported, just for a moment, to a place of wonder, a place in which they feel unburdened and happy.” Rachael Dalzell
Artist Rachael Dalzell’s work is held in the Agnes Gund Collection in New York, as well as many other private collections across the globe. Large pieces are currently hanging in Jesmond Dene House in Newcastle, the US Embassy in Dublin, at the headquarters of the Clerical Medical corporation, in the foyer of the Medical Council of Ireland, Alder Hey Children’s hospital in Liverpool and the East Anglian Children’s Hospice ‘The Nook’ .
Rachael studied Fine Art painting and drawing at the Wimbledon School of Art after a foundation course at The Wirral Metropolitan College in Birkenhead. She continued to develop her drawing technique at the Universidad Complutense in Madrid as part of the European Erasmus programme. She has previously been nominated for the Boundary Figurative are prize. Rachael paints and teaches life drawing classes in Norfolk.
Rachael’s work has featured in Who’s Who in Art (36th edition) and periodicals such as Vogue, House Beautiful Magazine, Period Ideas, Achica Living Design and Lifestyle, EDP Magazine and Newspaper, the front cover of Just Regional magazine, Time Out as well as many online blogs.
To view Rachael’s most recent work or for sales enquiries , please visit Capital Culture Gallery.