Boone Artist—Off the Grid and Around the World

By Susan Wienke

Drawing inspiration from the world that surrounds her, Rachael Van Dyke is a mid-career artist creating abstract work inspired by living off the grid in the Blue Ridge Mountains and traveling to artist residencies across the world.

Growing up in a large Italian family where emotions and energy were high, Van Dyke learned at a young age to create quickly, to work collaboratively, and to not become too attached to her work. Her parents encouraged their seven children to be active outdoors and creative indoors, requiring them at the end of each day to clean up and put away everything they worked on. Van Dyke recalls, “Knowing that my artwork and exploratory creations would be gone by bedtime, I was very quick to design, problem-solve, and build everything I dreamed of making for that day. I learned to say goodbye to my passionate work and looked forward to creating something new and fresh the next day.” This childhood dynamic produced a need in her to always be actively exploring and expressing new ideas and materials as an artist. Much of these early experiences set the stage for her ability to take her studio on the road and off the grid.

Van Dyke and her husband spend their summers in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Van Dyke has a summer studio and gallery representation. During the school year they travel to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where he teaches as an Assistant Professor of Industrial Design at Appalachian State University and Van Dyke paints full-time as a studio artist. Together, they live off the grid with students from App State in a tiny home community designed and built by her husband and his students.

Van Dyke’s North Carolina studio is located in downtown Boone, where her work can be viewed at the Common Good Co. in Blowing Rock and Molly Northern Interiors in Boone. Just a short drive away Van Dyke has additional gallery representation in Greenville, SC, with Art & Light Gallery. Most of Van Dyke’s inspiration comes from her artist-in-residence experiences in the U.S. and abroad. Always up

Rachael Van Dyke in her studio

Danish Houses, Orangeries and the North Sea, Denmark

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for an adventure, there are times Van Dyke backpacks or bikepacks to her residency right after a red-eye flight overseas. An avid traveler, she has traveled to BROTA Residencia de Artista (Argentina), Roskilde Artist in Residence (Denmark), Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (Virginia), Studio Faire (France), Golden Apple Art Residency (Maine), Keeneland Horse Raceway (Kentucky), and Isle Royale with the National Parks Artist-in-Residence Program (Michigan), to name a few. Much like when she was a child, she explores the outdoors, drawing inspiration from her surroundings. She incorporates her ideas onto her canvas quickly and then moves on to absorb the next thing that catches her attention.

For an upcoming solo exhibition at Art & Light Gallery, Van Dyke is drawing inspiration from her recent artist residency in Denmark. The working title of her exhibition is “Orangery.” Bicycling through Denmark Van Dyke notes, “Small glass orangeries appeared on the side lawns and backyards of almost every home we saw in Denmark—often very small, each an enclosed, private shelter—once used as winter greenhouses and garden tool sheds. Now, most were arranged and decorated for an intimate indoor/outdoor dining experience or warm, quiet morning reading space or a special, cozy place for tea with a friend. All allowed you to experience the beauty and sights of the outdoors even during the coldest and windiest of days.”

With regards to the intent behind the paintings, Van Dyke comments: “I am leaning into still life works that may reflect personal moments of stillness, quiet reflection, slow growth, and intimate interaction between two people or a small group of people. Maybe this is in response to COVID-19 and the return of interaction with others. I feel many people, like myself, are finding it difficult to move into ‘beyond family’ relationships again. Maybe this is a good thing? Maybe over the course of a decade or two we have, as a society, pulled away from our family roots and origins too easily because of transportation and socalled progress. When I travel to European countries, I still see the core family group living in the same town together, even within the same home together.”

Van Dyke is inspired by moving, going, and experiencing new places. She is excited to share her new collection. The exhibit can be viewed and purchases made starting January 31 at www.artandlightgallery.com/ exhibitions. If your winter travel plans take you to the Upstate of South Carolina, join Van Dyke as Art & Light Gallery hosts an artist reception on February 3 to celebrate this new collection. And be sure to view her local work in Boone and Blowing Rock.

Rachael Van Dyke in her studio Mandarin Tree in Blue Pot

Learn more about Rachael Van Dyke and her art at www.rachaelvandyke.com. Learn more about the Van Dykes’ Off-Grid Tiny House Community on YouTube:“Living Off-Grid in a Tiny House Community Built by Self-Reliant Couple.”