Rachel B. Hayes
Rachel Hayes was born in Independence, Missouri, and lives and works in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has traveled throughout the United States and Europe installing site-specific installations of her brightly colored, large-scale textile-based artwork. Hayes received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fiber from the Kansas City Art Institute before going on to receive a Master of Fine Arts in Painting from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Using fabric to create large-scale work, Hayes is interested in inserting color and form into built and natural environments. “Doing this highlights the beauty of a place and also transforms it so that we may see it in a different way,” says Hayes. “When I am creating an installation indoors, I am collaborating with the architecture and like to think the constraints of a site actually reveal the opportunities. Scale and lighting help guide the material choices, while the shape and placement are a direct response to how people are moving and viewing the work”. Of placing her textile art in landscapes, Hayes shares, “the world is a backdrop that is always changing, and my works are not static. Instead they blow in the wind and let light shine through.” Hayes documents her artwork when placed in these unique landscapes, creating contrast between her vibrant textiles and the distinct landscapes. She has captured stunning imagery of works temporarily placed in White Sands National Park of New Mexico, amongst ancient ruins in Turkey, and out on the rolling Flint Hills of Kansas, among others.
In 2018, Hayes collaborated with the Italian fashion house Missoni, culminating with a solo exhibition during Milan Design Week. For the fashion show itself, Hayes designed and fabricated a series of custom suspended canopies that appeared to float above the runway, creating a kaleidoscopic sky that filtered sunshine onto the collection of clothing on display as models walked underneath. Hayes hopes to bring a sense of place to the viewer through color and material.
Hayes is a recipient of the Joan Mitchell Award in Painting and Sculpture, Augustus Saint-Gaudens Memorial Fellowship in Sculpture, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Professional Fellowship in Sculpture, Virginia Commission for the Arts Fellowship in Sculpture, and a Charlotte Street Fund Award. Hayes has attended the Marie Walsh Sharpe Space Program, New York, NY; Sculpture Space Residency, Utica, NY; Art Omi International Artists’ Residency, Ghent, NY; Roswell Artist-in-Residence program in Roswell, NM; and the Tulsa Artist Fellowship in Tulsa, OK.
Currently, Hayes has a major textile installation at the Chicago Botanical Gardens, and a commissioned flag flying high when Ballroom Marfa in Marfa, TX is open. Recently, she exhibited a site-specific installation at NOMAD in Capri, Italy, and was commissioned to create a multi-story installation at the Nevada Museum of Fine Arts in Reno, NV. Her work has been covered by The New Yorker, The New York Times, Architectural Digest, Vogue, The Cut, Elle Decor, Denver Post, LA Weekly, Los Angeles Times, Harper’s Bazaar, Wallpaper and Galerie Magazine.
