Artist Profile:

Raquel Clarke

Born into an artistic family, Raquel Clarke grew up immersed in the art world. The third generation artist studied fine art in the atelier and was apprenticed to renowned New Zealand artist Ivan Clarke.

Raquel specialises in painting landscapes in thick oil paints on large, coarse canvases. Her textural work features rich colour palettes depicting flowers, field, oceans and ethereal cloudscapes.

After her apprenticeship with Ivan Clarke, Raquel attended Hillsong College in Sydney, Australia. She gained a Certificate in IV Ministry and studied Worship and the Creative Arts, adding a new layer to her compositions.

In 2011, aged just 22, Raquel began painting as a full time, professional artist. In 2014 she won the Best Landscape category of the Aspiring Art Prize and also won the People’s Choice award and the Emerging Artist prize during the Autumn Festival Art Exhibition. In 2015, she completed her Diploma in Appreciating Art with the Australian Art Institute.

Now based in the heart of Queenstown, New Zealand, Raquel has several collections; the Clouds collection, Wildflower collection, Ocean Lights, Shadowlands and Abstract Expressionism collections. As an emerging talent, her art has garnered a lot of local attention and her work is quickly increasing in popularity and value.

“I constantly find myself in awe of nature and the diverse colours that can be found therein - I feel that nothing can compare to the beauty of nature that is left completely undisturbed,” says Raquel.

Raquel Clarke - Artist Profile from Artbay Gallery, Queenstown, NZ on Vimeo.