Artist Rachel Renee Stewart interprets the unique natural beauty of Central Texas and bridges the gallery space with its surrounding neighborhood. She develops large scale, impressionistic landscape paintings directly on the existing infrastructure by riding a bicycle as a mode of paint application. In Stewart’s work action painting becomes activism as she aims to generate a dialog about transportation, urban development, traffic, and the environment. The audience is encouraged to watch the artist work during the days leading up to painting’s completion, and walk, bike, and drive vehicles over the painting at any stage.
Rachel Renee Stewart originates from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she earned her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University. In 2006 and 2007 she was a resident artist at Chautauqua Institution in Western New York State. Since moving to Austin, has volunteered with Bikes Across Borders and is a member of the Whalefall Collective. She has previously shown with the Austin Figurative Gallery.
