Artwork Description
Raphaelle Goethals – Borealis II
Dimensions: 39 x 67″ framed / 38 x 66″ unframed
Year: 2021
Medium: encaustic, oil and mineral pigments on birch panel
This wondrous work, Borealis II, part of a new series by Belgian born artist Raphaëlle Goethals, is an exceptional example of the new work where she continues her exploration of mystery through process. Goethals expands on her previous work by adapting her practice to include a more painterly and expressive approach — a groundbreaking technique in the medium that is unique only to Goethals.
Raphaëlle Goethals childhood was spent absorbing the beauty of European art. She moved to the United States to complete her art degree in Los Angeles, and that is where she finalized her unique abstract style. After only a short time in the United States, Raphaëlle’s works attracted the attention of curators, private collectors, and art critics alike, and her paintings became highly desirable additions to their collections. The U.S. Department of State has curated Raphaëlle’s paintings into its Art in Embassies program, thus exhibiting her paintings in such places as the American Embassy in Nigeria.
Her encaustic paintings are preoccupied with light and the space between heaven and earth. She sees painting as a space of exploration, where one can become lost in the atmosphere of beauty.
Goethals’ paintings have been featured in numerous museum exhibitions in the U.S. and Europe, including a recent solo exhibition at the Morris Graves Museum. Raphaëlle Goethals is one of a group of remarkable women artists such as Georgia O’Keeffe, Agnes Martin, Agnes Pelton, Susan Rothenberg, Linda Benglis, Florence Pierce, and Judy Chicago—instrumental in creating the world-renowned contemporary art center of Santa Fe.