Cavalier Photography, 2025
Modus Studio | Nelagoney Glen

Art to Honor Wholeness

Rachel Grace Borntrager, 36, (she/her/hers) is an abstract expressionist and portrait painter. Rachel’s art is inspired by elements of somatic therapy and the emotional complexity experienced in close relationships. Rachel uses a combination of fluid layers of paint, negative space, and lines on raw canvas to express moments deeply felt by the body but which may be overlooked by analytical and language-based thinking. In her most recent paintings, she uses intuitive line marks to externally “map” the body’s emotional responses and breath. Her paintings and workshops all have one goal: to aid people in their process of becoming whole. “Art to honor wholeness” has been her personal motto since the day she started her career as a visual artist. Rachel hosts collaborative workshops called “Painting Your Breath-Line Art” for both public and private groups, often co-leading with local therapists and other artists.

Rachel received her BA in Studio Art from College of the Ozarks and has worked professionally for 5 years now. She creates art for members of her community in Northwest Arkansas and beyond, including for therapists, non-profits, charities, businesses, and churches. Rachel is wife to Chris, and mommy to Evs, Bo, and Paul. You can find her exploring the outdoors, reading a cookbook or a collection of essays on history, and there’s no stopping her if she’s feeling the beat to a song. Having grown up in St. Louis, Missouri, Rachel has been a resident of Fayetteville, Arkansas for 13 years.

EDUCATION
Bachelor of Arts, College of The Ozarks, Missouri.
Studio Art, Emphasis in Graphic Design, Minor in Philosophy and Religion

AWARDS
Practicing Artist Fellow 2023-2024, Artists 360, Mid America Art Alliance

RESIDENCE
Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA.

CONTACT
rachelborntragerart@gmail.com