Princeton Blog

November 1, 2017

Artist Spotlight: Rheni Tauchid

Payne's Wave by Rheni Tauchid - Princeton Artist Brush Co.

Rheni Tauchid is an Ontario-based artist, author, and educator. Her abstract style of painting is connected to landscape and repetitive pattern, and heavily influenced by interaction with her materials and tools. Born in Canada to French Canadian and Indonesian parents, Rheni grew up traveling and living in many countries, as her father worked for the United Nations.

How did your upbringing influence your art?

Languages, global crafts, music and the vast variety of landscape and textures of the world have all combined to influence and inform my work. Their diversity and texture have combined to form what, to me, is a harmonious and intricate groundwork to my creative output.

How and when did you begin your career as a professional artist, and how has your career evolved?

I have always drawn, but painting was something that I struggled to find my voice with until I started working with acrylic mediums. I have been teaching, painting, and writing professionally since the 1990’s. So far, my career has primarily been one of art consultation, teaching, and writing. All of my artwork has been a product in support of those things. [Going] forward, I [intend to make] the time to paint for the sake of painting, rather than [solely] for the sake of demonstration and education.

Your medium of choice is acrylic paint; you have written two books on acrylics, and are working on a third. When did you begin working with acrylics and what initially captivated your interest in them?

I first experimented with acrylics in high school, and at the time, I did not like them; [I preferred] the transparency of watercolours, and the punch of India ink. As my skill and curiosity grew, so did [the] development [of acrylics] in both scope and quality. This parallel evolution has kept me entranced with the medium, as I continue to explore both what I can produce with it, and how it informs the direction of my artmaking as it continues to transcend its original purpose and formulation. No other art material is as versatile and malleable as acrylic.

In addition to being an artist and author, you work as a materials consultant and are involved in product development and art education at acrylic paint manufacturer, Tri-Art Manufacturing. How do you find a balance between your professional and creative ventures?

They are completely intertwined, which is sometimes amazing, and sometimes fraught with complications. It’s rare for me to find the time to make art that is not in some way connected to a project. But all of my work, be it for Tri-Art, my books, a workshop or demonstration, informs my personal creative expression, and vice versa. So it is actually a beneficial symbiosis.

What can readers expect to discover in your new book on acrylics?

This one is exclusively about acrylic mediums, something that the Princeton tools are a natural fit for. There are many books on acrylic painting, and mediums are only just barely touched on in most of them. I thought it was time to go a little deeper into the how and the why of these amazing and diverse materials. I’m very excited about this project!

What are your favorite Princeton brushes/products?

It’s difficult to pick a favourite Princeton brush or tool, as I love so many of them. The Redline brushes, because of their springiness and their size, are great utilitarian tools and stand up to a lot of beating. The catalyst wedges and tools are obviously a lot of fun to use for texturizing and scraping away paint. There’s something about the Umbria series that has just the right feel for laying down colour, and they look great too! My current go-to tool right now though, is the 4” Catalyst polytip mottler. Cleans easily, holds a tight shape, and feels great in the hand.