Hi, I’m Rachel Sierra!

I was raised throughout Latin America—my family moved often when I was young, eventually settling in the Dominican Republic later in my childhood. I never imagined I would end up living here again. Feeling transient, I continued traveling for years until I met my other half, Matt, and together we found our way back to the island. We only intended to stay a short while, but somehow the years passed. Now, we are raising two boys here—boys who were born on this island and spend most of their days sandy and salty—and I couldn’t be more grateful.

I am a self-taught multidisciplinary artist and a painter by trade. Along the way, I found my way into book illustration and design. I spend my days painting in my studio, learning new hobbies, or surfing at the beach. Driven to document life in all its textures, I move fluidly between painting, photography, and storytelling—and sometimes even creating coffee table books with my boys... because why not?

I’ve always had trouble keeping things in their boxes. Though I love a simple and clean aesthetic, it didn’t seem that simple to me, how to edit a life into neat categories. And life seems to find its way to blend. Art seeps into my clothes, my life into my work, my kids into my studio, my paint on my kids, the ocean into my palettes, and the sand into my home.

Learning to mother through art and nature has been one of my greatest joys. I am busy chasing my two wild boys by the sea while weaving into their childhood a reverence for the earth, art, music, movement, and imagination. Teaching our children to care for the earth, to reuse and recycle, and to notice and tend to the ecosystems we inhabit feels both meaningful and necessary.

It is so easy to fill our homes with plastic, toys, and things that don’t last, so finding creative ways to turn instead toward nature—and toward what we already own—has become a joyful challenge. Working with organic materials and things we have on hand has taught us to move a little closer to the rhythms of the earth. It inspires us to notice the life around us, pay attention to cycles of renewal, and remake what is broken into something new.

Our home is filled with driftwood, stones, and shells; our floors are forever dusted with sand, and our clothes stained with paint. And still, I feel endlessly grateful for this life we create together.