Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Giberson.
Hi Rachel, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I had just graduated college when I had my first baby and decided to take some time off of working to raise him. I was relatively young and not expecting to become a parent so soon, but I ended up really enjoying motherhood. My husband and I decided to have two more children while we were young and energetic, so by my mid twenties I was mostly spending my days raising three small children. My brain has always been wired for creativity and I needed an outlet, so I started making art during nap times. Eventually I posted the things I was making on Instagram and I met new people around Austin who were interested in my work and I got little jobs here and there making art. I’m still making art regularly and now that all of my children are in school I’m exploring new career ideas and creative projects. Currently I’m writing a weekly newsletter about Austin. It’s really casual and I try to write it as if I’m just reaching out to a bunch of friends about the things I’m enjoying about the city. I grew up in San Marcos and spent a lot of my time as a teenager meeting friends in Austin (including my future husband)–it’s been interesting to see the city change and grow, and I am enjoying having a reason to explore and write about the things I’m finding.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has not been a smooth road! Becoming a mother at a relatively young age (I was 23!) was a learning curve for me. I had to figure out how to make time for creativity and it took a while to learn that. I also had to battle a lot of guilt about doing things for myself. I realized over time, though, that I can’t be a happy, functioning person in this world if I’m not working on some sort of creative project. It doesn’t matter if the project is for money or not, I just have to have something for my brain to work on. Being a self-taught artist also comes with a lot of self-doubt. I was asked to participate in a group show in Paris a few years after I started making art and I nearly said “no thank you” just because I thought I shouldn’t have been asked in the first place. Classic imposter syndrome stuff.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Currently I am really enjoying printmaking. I do a lot of simple block-printing and it’s so meditative. I like to block print small squares of tissue paper and then I glue them together to make collages. I really love taking simple forms and colors to express complex ideas. I’m not sure that everyone sees that when they see my work, but it brings me a lot of joy to take difficult emotions and process them by using simple shapes and colors.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
I really like math. Creativity and making things is definitely my life, but I love math too. I studied business in college and loved calculus. I always volunteer to help my kids with their math homework. It’s so fun–like a puzzle.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rachelfromaustin.com
- Other: https://boyhowdyaustin.substack.com
Image Credits
All images by Rachel Giberson
