Thriving

February 2026

I thrive on deadlines. At least, that’s what I’ve always told myself, but I wonder if it’s simply been a way to rationalize what I do. My daughter, who’s been diagnosed with ADHD, tells me I’m the one she gets it from, and apparently, avoiding/procrastinating/waiting until the last minute is symptomatic of that brain condition. In other words, my behavior makes makes “thriving on deadlines” a necessity.

Well. I don’t actually like feeling stressed and overwhelmed and in a panic while feeling the window of opportunity closing as I try to breathe. So. Time for a new strategy. It’s called Frontload The Panic.

Frontloading panic means figuring out what needs to be accomplished by X date (e.g., how many paintings to be created for a show) and making arbitrary deadlines for myself (e.g., X number of paintings must be created this week).

It’s not a perfect system because I’m highly distractable and I have a long history of somehow making it work while flying by the seat of my pants. However, I am doggedly determined to manage myself and Be The Boss. I’ve set my expectations for myself and am tracking my progress.

How about you? Are there things you do that drive you crazy? Are there ways you move through life you’d do differently if you could? Tell me. I need the company.

Warmly,

Rachel (feeling energized)

p.s. I’m already behind.

In the Studio:

More Series(es). Lots and lots of Series(es):

From top left:
I Might Just Stay, 72x48 inches, $6550;
Things Unfolding, 48x24 inches, $3250;
All The Memories, 36x48 inches, $4450, all oil on canvas.

L-R:
The Things You Believe In, 24x24 inches, $1750;
The One You Call Home, 30x30 inches, $2550;
both oil on canvas.

L-R:
One Shining Day, 24x24 inches, $1750;
All The Light, 24x24 inches, $1750;
both oil on canvas.

Strength To Hold, 48x60 inches, oil on canvas, $5600.

Collector Corner

Like Gold, 36x36 inches, went home with a Salem, OR, collector who’s been looking for it her whole life. She’s had an elusive image in her mind since childhood and when she saw this painting, there was an instant recognition. Thank you, Susie K., for taking my work home to live with you! (And I love the cat.)

While not technically “collected,” as they are on loan from the Rental Sales Gallery, these three paintings look amazing in this space and also, one of the co-owners is, indeed, a collector. Thank you, Kimberly Bernosky and Courtney Storrs, for supporting my work in multiple ways. If you are in the Portland, OR, area, please patronize their fabulous restaurant, Noble Rot! Check out their website for more info.

SHOW SCHEDULE

~summer schedule coming soon~

Please patronize these galleries:
Art on Oak, & Stave & Stone Winery in Hood River, OR; PAM's Rental Sales Gallery in Portland, OR. Check them out!

Passage

Somewhere in the trees, a woodpecker demonstrated its percussion skills. Lots of little tan lizards with blue underbellies skittered among the rocks. Bumblebees the size of thimbles brushed lazily through the bushes, fluffy bodies serene against the breeze. I smelled the minerals of the warm brown dirt with each slow, shallow inhale. Nothing built on asphalt could mimic such chaotic harmony. That six foot squared patch of backyard felt like an infinitely busy constellation of life. I would have rather starved than leave my spot in it, basking under the eye of the fizzling blue sky.

-excerpt from an essay by Ella Harvey

ABOUT MY NEWSLETTER

New pieces, works in progress, notifications of art shows and other happenings, insights into my artistic process and always, some philosophical ramblings thrown in for free. Unlike myself, my art has no façade, no pretense, no anxiety, no insecurity. My work is always, and completely, reverent, sincere, earnest, transparent. It represents me at my best.