As a painter, I am interested in visual communication. As a figurative painter, I am especially interested in how the human body communicates thoughts and emotions. I primarily focus on female figures, as I have always found women to be excellent keepers of secrets. As I paint these girls, I try to create a subtle narrative about their inner lives. For example, the tilt of the hear or a lift of a shoulder can say so mich about a person's state of mind. An arched eyebrow can belie a smile.

I keep my compositions simple and use a single source of light to help highlight the body language of my subject. I love portraying the individual beauty of my models, but my ultimate goal is to evoke the question: "What is she thinking?" My hope is that the viewer is encouraged to consider what might be going on beneath the surface.

The majority of the "Inside Voices" Series is on exhibit and available through Foundry Art Centre, (636) 255-0270. A select few paintings are in studio and available by emailing me at rachelfbriggs@gmail.com . Information on each composition price, size, and availability can be found by selecting a piece in the Gallery.

Commissioning and future exhibition requests can be made to rachelfbriggs@gmail.com .

Rachel Ferguson was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and earned her MFA from Savannah College of Art and Design before moving and settling in Missouri. She started drawing portraits around the age of 12, and at 18 she discovered oil painting and fell in love with the medium. Since then, she has concentrated on figurative painting, mostly focusing on the female figure. Ferguson works from her home studio in Warrenton, Missouri, where she lives with her husband and two teenage children.