Rachel Cope

Rachel Cope is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice explores themes of transformation, fragility, and the interplay of light and form. Her paintings exist in liminal spaces between reality and illusion, weaving together recurring motifs, holographic effects, and ethereal landscapes. Anchored in elements of the natural world, Cope’s compositions dissolve the boundaries between physicality and spirituality, in harmony with interior and exterior realms.

Her visual language is deeply influenced by the motif of the prism, refracting light into spectral fragments that suggest unseen dimensions of human experience. Figures and faces emerge and recede within these dreamlike spaces, while swans, a recurring symbol in her work, embody grace, vulnerability, and reverence for nature. Abstracted dwellings and thresholds explore the shifting notion of home, evoking both familiarity and otherworldliness.

With a background in sculpture and Art Therapy, Cope’s mastery of materiality is evident in her technique. She works with acrylic and pencil on clay-coated panels, layering translucent washes over finely drawn lines to create surfaces that shift with changing perspectives. Inspired by the spiritual and esoteric philosophies of Rudolf Steiner, her works seek to balance structure and fluidity, engaging viewers in a meditation on the delicate interplay between the tangible and the transcendent.

Rachel Cope holds a BFA in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MPS in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Arts. She has exhibited internationally at Galerie DYS, Roll & Hill Gallery, Friedman Benda, The Future Perfect, and Egg Collective, among others. Her work is included in the permanent collection of the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, and has been featured in Architectural Digest, The New York Times, Forbes, and Wallpaper Magazine. 

In addition to her artistic practice, Cope is the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Calico Wallpaper, a design studio integrating artistic expression into interior spaces. She lives and works in Ghent, NY.