Rachel Esposito

October - December 2026

I’ve been invested in making art for as long as I can remember. While exploring many creative outlets in my youth, painting won out as my primary focus. I went to CCAD to study Illustration and Art History, completing a BFA in 2015. Since then, while also working full time in the service industry as a bartender, I participate in art shows, gallery shows, fairs, and work on commission when times allow.

From my roots in studying illustration I’m hugely motivated by stories. Whether they come from literature, mythology, or fairytales they are a primary source of inspiration. I also enjoy injecting symbolism in the form of plants, animals, objects, or poses to add a layer of interest in my work which varies from piece to piece and I predominately focus on female subject matters. 

I’ve worked a long time to nail down a concrete process for my work, most of my ideas start with writing out what I want to create before sketching out several rough concepts to choose from. I gather source material to reference while finalizing a line drawing of the piece. I scan or photograph that basic line drawing to complete a color study digitally. In this process I also craft my own surfaces. I combine unfinished wooden panels with my preferred type of watercolor paper or bristol board depending on the project. My line drawing is then transferred to this panel before being inked. I use acrylic ink and brushes only for my line work. More detail is often added to the line drawing at this stage, I like the drawing under the paint to do a lot of heavy lifting for my subject matter. I then take the digital color study I made and use my watercolors to match as best as I can to that study. After the painting process is completed I then seal the surface with several layers of archival wax, buffing it carefully between layers. Using wax allows the painting to be protected without fear of moisture penetrating the paper further, and allows a glass-less view of the final painting.