Vivid peacock with spread feathers - 3D pen art.

Painting in Plastic with Rachel Goldsmith

Rachel Goldsmith strikes a fine balance in her artwork between control and chaos. When creating her Doodled masterpieces, she is exacting and meticulous while unafraid of taking a wild leap off the beaten path when another flash of inspiration strikes.

This harmony between two seemingly opposing concepts is nothing new for Rachel. “My artwork is inspired by two sets of contrasts,” she explains. “In my environment, the contrast between man-made and nature; and in materials, the contrast between the control I have over the media and how the media naturally interact with each other. This inspiration manifests itself in my final pieces through contrasts in color, in line, shape and form, and in textures”

  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler

Based in Brooklyn, New York, Rachel collaborated with 3Doodler for the debut in MoMA’s design store windows with her Metamorphosis Lamp.

Metamorphosis Lamp Metamorphosis Lamp
But she had been Doodling long before that, creating mixed media masterpieces and exploring the properties of plastics in unique and unusual ways.

In person, Rachel is a whirlwind of life and laughter, and her artwork is detailed and brimming with energy. She has learned how to adapt and even harness the sometimes unpredictable nature of melted plastic.

Sometimes she lashes it into shape, controlling the Doodled lines with a precise, steady hand. At other times she lets the PLA flow naturally, reacting and adjusting as its meandering motion takes her art in new directions.

Rachel allows her pieces to evolve in a very organic way. Some works, like the appropriately-titled experimental Frankenstein, start on a large scale, stretched horizontally across six feet.

  • 3d pen art Frankenstein by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art Frankenstein by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art Frankenstein by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art Frankenstein by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler
  • 3d pen art Frankenstein by Rachel Goldsmith using 3Doodler

Over the course of a few weeks, the piece was folded, ironed, molded, cut, flipped and formed into a leaf-like form made of PLA, copper leaf, and brass foil.

Rachel’s mix of chaotic control reflects what Doodling is at it’s core: endless experimentation.back to top image

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