The Artist

400w Rachel Cross Signing prints at city bistro 900x620Rachel Cross is an internationally trained and traveled artist attracting attention for her vivid and striking oil pastel paintings. Originally trained in watercolor, at 4 years old, while living in Tokyo Japan, she continued her inquisitive journey by training, questioning, and learning from artists from all over the globe. Rachel, at 17, picked up oil pastels and has been cultivating her sui generis style ever since.

Her paintings started gaining international recognitition when Red Boat was hosted in a Peter Doig collection in 2014. After his painting White Canoe set a world record for the hightest price paid to a living artist. It sold for 11 million at auction.

St. Augustine Artist Rachel Cross with published bookSince then, Red Boat has gained more attention and become the cover of hightly awarded and acknowledged American novelist, Louise Erdrich's german release of LaRose, titled Ein Lied fur die Geister. Released in October of 2016. 

Rachel's oil pastel techniques include controlling the temperature of both the canvas and oil pastels. Which allows her to achieve layers that capture color-shifting properties and depth. Her impressive backgrounds usually take months to create before she begins to construct a lucid focal point.

Personal Life

300w helicopter with Rachel and daughter400w Rachel Cross   with business cardBorn in Maryland January 5th 1984. She spent her youth traveling or exploring the wilderness until she became a ward of the state and was placed in foster care. With tremulous living arrangments not much differnt from her humble beginnings she decided at 14 to care and look after herself. At 23 she joined and spent 8 years in the Air Force. Where she was an aircraft electrician and mechanic. She worked on the largest planes in the sky C-5's and even Black Hawk helicopters. Rachel Cross, now calls St. Augustine Florida home, where she spends her time as a full time mother, teaching kung fu, running her art business, caring for a menagerie of animals, and appreciating all that is and who is around her.

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