Matter in transformation; metamorphosis, one state to another. I am particularly drawn to how such elemental shifts coincide with the sometimes devastating effects of human beings on the world around them. Here, I portray this transmutation of matter as calculated explosions on aerial landscapes; the ground living, breathing, and dying all at once, in a heavenly haze.
Simultaneously, these images of meteoric combustion and uncertainty loosely depict colorful images of global warming as seen on climate change maps, thus liberating the mind from any certain and singular symbolism.
Created through a unique process of brushing, rubbing and dusting, my charcoal under paintings are comprised of the same material they seek to portray, the natural tools of my chosen trade. The charcoal is left in its crude form in order to create an organic, almost visceral surface on which the lush properties of oil paint naturally contrast.
Rachel Sager is an oil painter living and working in the San Francisco Bay Area. She received a BFA from Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia after studying at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence, Italy. Her work has been featured in many Internationally juried shows including Aqua International Art Fair in Miami, FL; Open and Crocker-Kingsley California Biennial; in addition to the Emmy Award-winning documentary "Sketching the Silk Road".
