Printing Gratitude with Raquel Baldocchi – Ep 130

Raquel Baldocchi is a mixed-media contemporary artist in the Bay Area. Raquel draws inspiration from her grandmother, who created textile art, made beautiful scrapbooks, and crafted ornaments every year for Christmas.

Raquel’s college boyfriend’s mother was a printmaker. She influenced Raquel so much that Raquel pursued a degree in printmaking. Now, every piece of art that Raquel creates is infused with a story.

In this episode, Raquel and I have a conversation in my studio while we’re creating. Join us by bringing along a sketchbook or something you are working on, and allow yourself to be inspired to create something new.

Listen if you are interested in…

• Working with mixed medium elements [2:31]
• How Raquel’s grandmother influenced her art [7:33]
• Love in the Time of Cholera [10:38]
• Why Raquel’s art has evolved [16:15]
• Why gallery shows aren’t for everyone [26:14]
• What inspires Raquel? [32:45]
• What Raquel learned from loss [38:57]

What inspires Raquel?

Raquel is inspired by stories. She took notes when she read the book, “Love in the Time of Cholera,” and allowed it to shape her art. She pairs her love for the human form with the intriguing characters she meets or reads about. Her art allows her to tell their story.

Raquel started doing interviews with her collectors to promote in her newsletter. She started asking her buyers what they loved about her art.

Raquel met a woman who bought one of her paintings because the scene reminded her of her family. This woman not only thought her work was beautiful, but she could tell herself a story when she looked at the painting.

Someone will always see something in your work that you don’t see. Art truly is in the eye of the beholder.

Why Raquel’s art has evolved

When Raquel feels stuck, she switches things up and takes new approaches with her work. Raquel feels as if cutting things out of paper and gluing them down is liberating. It allows you to build on what you’ve created. If she lets go of any attachment she has and tries something new, the work finds new life. Two of the pieces Raquel is working on she made because she was willing to try something new.

What Raquel learned from great loss

Raquel lost her husband five years ago. It was a happy marriage, so when she lost him, she felt that chapter in her life was closing. So she spent time traveling. She joined a Zumba class and had a friend visit from Costa Rica. She knew life could still be vibrant. She said, “No matter how things look, there is good to be had. Good things do happen.”

A few months after her husband died, she put on a black slip dress and red lipstick, and turned on Stevie Wonder music. Why? Because it changed her energy. It reminded her that the world was full of possibilities.

Steve Wonder is also what she listened to with her college boyfriend when they were young and in love. And after 45 years, her college boyfriend contacted her during Covid. If she was ever going to be with someone again, it was him. Life truly comes full circle.

Raquel is able to sit in gratitude. She believes that life has been good to her. She was dealt a difficult hand and knew she had to play it well. She truly believes that your life is a curation. What do you want in it? How will you choose to feel?

Resources & People Mentioned

• Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez
• Gabilan Cattle Company

Connect with Raquel Baldocchi

• www.raquelbaldocchi.com
• Follow on Instagram @raquelbaldocchi

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