Colour is her world

Artist Rachel Rush gravitates towards vibrant, bold hues for her distinctive mixed-media artwork. Immerse yourself in her creativity during Art Week, October 4-13.

When the wind blows, artist Rachel Rush is inside her purpose-built home studio in Auckland’s Takapuna, working on her large-scale, poured acrylic and resin canvases. Bold and bright, these works combine their audacity with an almost ethereal whimsy.

Because Rachel’s technique is pouring, rather than brushwork, her art practice sees her work on surfaces – mainly canvas, but recently mirror – laid flat. “It kind of happens in the moment. The resin is clear, and then I add colour into the resin,” she explains. She might add multiple layers, repeating and refining until she feels a work is finished.

On calm, clear days, Rachel dons protective gear, including a heavy-duty mask, and heads outside to spray paint and layer canvases with stencil work and collage. It’s a messy business, but this is the process to make her gritty, graffiti-style art, which she sells as part of her RUSH range.

The dichotomy of her two different collections, produced under her own name and the RUSH label, gives the self-taught artist creative freedom and allows her to explore her art in her own way. “They represent the different sides of my personality,” she reflects.

Rachel’s love of colour has been constant in her life – at school on the North Shore she loved art and was always drawing, but as a bit of a rebel who “hated being told what to do,” she left school to work for hand-painted, fluoro-bright fashion brand Kozmik.

Then after a decade working as general manager for her parents’ electrical wholesale business, Rachel gravitated back to art after the birth of her first child, Piper, now 24. “Art was always just there,” she says.

Her art practice grew as her family grew – after Piper came Hunter, 21, and then Honor, 19. Now Rachel has been working as a full-time artist for 17 years.

She and her husband and business partner Graham Rush have renovated and built several homes, but the couple’s concrete, glass and steel home of six years, which they designed themselves, features studio spaces that can accommodate Rachel’s large canvases. “I prefer to do large scale,” she says.

Rachel’s longtime dealer gallery is Flagstaff Art Gallery in Devonport. Her eye-catching artwork has also been exhibited internationally and her works sell out. Earlier this year she became artist-in-residence at SO/ Auckland hotel’s adjunct SO/ Gallery. Launched in April, The Rachel Rush Residency was initially scheduled to run for six months but it has been extended until August 2025.

As part of Art Week, Rachel is debuting a new exhibition at SO/ Gallery. Free to the public, Sugar Rush is on view from October 8-12. Inspired by sugar and sweet treats, the exhibition will feature 10 Rachel Rush fine art works, as well as 10 RUSH street-art pieces. All artworks are for sale.

A highlight of the week is The Sugar Rush Experience on Thursday, October 10. Part of Late Night Art, the ticketed event at SO/ Gallery will be an immersive experience where the Sugar Rush exhibition comes to life with food, drinks, and tactile experiences. The gallery will be transformed into a series of curated spaces, where guests can experience the art along with bespoke sugary treats and refreshments. SO/ Auckland’s hotel’s HISO Rooftop Bar will also have a special Sugar Rush cocktail, matching the art and experience on offer, available all weekend.

Registrations are also invited for free hosted tours to see SO/ Auckland hotel’s eye-catching design, as well as a visit to SO/ Gallery where Rachel Rush will be present to talk about her work, its evolution and the unique process of her art making. Bookings are essential and are available for sessions on Friday, October 4, 5.30-7pm, and Thursday, October 10, 3.30pm-5pm. Terms and conditions apply.

See more about Art Week and book a SO/ Hotel and the Art of Rachel Rush Tour at Heartofthecity.co.nz/artweek. The Sugar Rush Experience is on at SO/ Gallery, 57 Customs St East, from 5.30pm-8.30pm on Thursday, October 10. Tickets to The Sugar Rush experience are $49 per person and are available from Eventbrite.co.nz. Private Sugar Rush viewings are also available by appointment. Email cary@flagstaff.nz or visit Flagstaff.nz for more information.