Mandy Racine

Mandy Racine was born in Scotland but grew up mainly in the south of England. In 2000, Mandy moved to Mallorca, Spain where she worked as a specialist painter in interior design before realizing her true dream was to paint as a full-time artist. Racine is inspired by the old masters, particularly the composition, colors & fabrics of the Rococo and Baroque periods. Drawing from such masters as Peter Paul Rubens, François Boucher, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, and Thomas Gainsborough, Racine interprets well-known classic paintings by theses artists by adding abstract elements to the composition. In this manner, Racine’s paintings create a bridge from the classical to the contemporary. Racine does not exclusively take inspiration from old masters but she is also inspired by the contemporary artworks of Joan Mitchell, Willem de Kooning, Cecily Brown and so on. Looking at a rendering of Gainsborough’s famous Blue Boy (ca. 1770), for example, is interpreted by Racine with highly expressive brushwork that breathes new life into a familiar image from art history. She is constantly experimenting with textures & layered paint to convey dynamic flow & movement. Racine mainly works with acrylic paint, charcoal, & pastels. Painting in a very expressive way, abstract elements are explored in her figurative subjects, landscapes and the spaces in between.

Mandy undertook a Foundation Course in Art, passing with Merit, and went on to achieve a degree in Fine Art at West Surrey College of Art & Design, UK. Racine’s work has been exhibited extensively throughout the UK, Spain, France & the United States and her paintings are collected privately around the globe. Recently her work has been widely publicized across various media including the New York Times due to her portraits being featured in luxury suites at Fouquet’s New York Hotel. Mandy is proud to undertake collaborations with charities such as 4bySix painting a panel from a London bus to raise funds for homelessness.. For a number of years she carried out book illustration projects with several published.

“Painting takes me to another place, my own special world inspired by the old masters & Baroque and Rococo imagery. I’m inspired by the composition, colour & flow of the works and love to put my own contemporary twist on it, painting in a very gestural, energetic way.”

Education

BA (Hons) Degree Fine Art, West Surrey College of Art & Design, Farnham, UK 1985 – 1988
Foundation Course in Art & Design, East Surrey College of Art, Reigate, UK. Passed with Merit. 1984 – 1985

Exhibitions
Various works exhibited with RVP Gallery, UK Group Show at S’Estacio Gallery, Petra, Mallorca
2022 Portraits installed in luxury suites at Fouquet’s New York Hotel, New York, USA
2022 Works on show at Little Art Boutique, Palma, Mallorca 2021 Various works on show at RVP Gallery, UK
2020 Featured in ‘Best Selling Women Artists of All Time’ with Saatchi Art
2019 The Other Art Fair, Group Show, London, UK
2019 Front cover & featured artist in Saatchi Art Spring Catalogue ‘The New Masters of 2019’
2019Featured in Inside Artists magazine
2018 Featured in Saatchi Collection ‘Year in Review 2018: Top Painters Featured in both Spring & Fall Catalogues, Saatchi Art
2018 Night of Art Group Exhibition, Algaida, Mallorca
2018Various artworks on show at Ahoy Gallery, Palma, Mallorca
2017 Two artworks shown via Art Box Projects, Basel, Switzerland Various artworks on show at Ahoy Gallery, Palma
2016 Nit d’Art at new Ahoy Gallery, Palma, Mallorca
2016 Various artworks on show at Ahoy Gallery, Palma, Mallorca
2015 5th Anniversary Exhibition, Art Mallorca Gallery, Palma, Mallorca ‘In Movement’ Group Exhibition, Art Mallorca Gallery, Palma, Mallorca
2015 Various artworks exhibited at Ahoy Gallery, Port Adriano, Mallorca Group Exhibition at Ambiente Gallery, Llucmajor, Mallorca
2014 Various works exhibited at Ahoy Gallery, Port Adriano, Mallorca Group Exhibition at Ambiente Gallery, Llucmajor, Mallorca
2013 Group Art Exhibition, Cuidadanos Europeos, Sa Taronja, Andratx, Mallorca
Exhibition of animal portraits, Santa Ponsa Country Club, Mallorca Night of Art Group Exhibition, Mood Beach Club, Portals, Mallorca
2012 Solo Exhibition at Open Studio, Algaida, Mallorca
2011 Works on the theme of ‘Mountain Art’ exhibited at various venues in Gstaad, Switzerland
2011 Joint exhibition at Port Adriano Hotel, Santa Ponsa & Hotel Golf Santa Ponsa, Mallorca
2009 Solo exhibition at ‘Barrocco’, Palma, Mallorca
2003 Group Exhibition at La Hacienda de Zapata Gallery, Son Ferriol, Mallorca
2001 Solo Exhibition at Aztec Café, Palma, Mallorca
1998 Group Exhibition at Sussex Art Club, Brighton, UK
1997 Group Exhibition at Gardner Arts Centre, Brighton, UK
Studied for 6 weeks at Ecole des Beaux Arts, Nice, France & work in their collection
1996 Group Exhibition at Easton Rooms Gallery, Rye, UK
1992 Solo Show at the Albion Gallery, Lewes, UK
1991 Printmaking Exhibition at South Bank Centre, London, UK
1990 Brighton Illustrators Group Exhibition, Brighton, UK (won first prize)
1989 ‘Discerning Eye’ Exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London, UK 1988 ’13 Well Hung’ Degree Show at Art Centre, London, UK
2025 Interviewed for ‘Humans of Mallorca’ about my art practice
2024 Finalist in Women in Art Prize, UK
2022 Featured in an article in the New York Times about my work in Fouquet’s New York Hotel
2021 Interviewed by Ultima Hora newspaper about my work
2018 Interviewed by Klassic Magazine
2014 Featured in book ‘Mallorca’s Best Recommendations’
2014 Interviewed by IB3 Television about my artwork & filmed in studio, Mallorca
2001-2013 Freelance professional artist undertaking the designing, drawing & painting of frescoes and other related decorative finishes in private homes & businesses for interior designers, Mallorca
2005 Commissioned to produce 2 large scale drawings of Rodin & Utrillo for a client in Japan
1991-1999 Freelance Illustrator for Bridgewater Books Ltd, Lewes, UK. Published works included ‘The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Arthurian Legends’
1997 Commissioned by the Institute of Chartered Accountants, London to produce a painting incorporating their logo for use on banners/ posters for a conference. That artwork is now in their permanent art collection, London.
1996 Commissioned by Design Revolution, Brighton, UK to produce illustrations for a brochure for the Federation of Small Businesses.
1995 Commissioned by Satel Doc television company in London, UK to produce illustrations for a documentary on the life of King Arthur for the Arts