Robyn Drake, currently residing near San Francisco in Half Moon Bay, California, she grew up on an Iowa farm amidst cattle, horses, and expansive landscapes, and after college lived in Chicago, IL until 2013 when she relocated to the Bay Area. Drake earned degrees in studio art and art history at Drake University, with further development through post-graduate classes at the Art Institute of Chicago, Stanford University, and the Academy of Art University.
Through the use of oils, oil pastels, charcoal, and more recently, acrylics, she explores the interplay of awe and endurance, vulnerability, and resilience through representational subjects.
Pieces created 2022 - 2024
Gideon is a horse I knew for several years in the Bay Area who passed in December of 2023. His owner commissioned a portrait of him, which I completed and did subsequent iterations of Gideon. He was a strong athletic horse with a wonderful wildness about him.
Hector is a raven friend who lives in Moss Beach, CA at the ranch where I keep my horse. He landed on my horse's croup one day while I was riding and that was the beginning of an unusual relationship between Hector, my horse Patron, and me. I've done quite a few paintings and studies of Hector over the years, and this one is one of my favorites. In many mythologies, ravens are the messengers between two worlds, and I painted this sensitive little piece with that idea in mind. A gentle, inviting raven looking over his shoulder as if to say, "follow me. Don't be afraid." 2024
Thalia is a model I worked with in Chicago many years ago. I recently found photos I'd taken of her and decided to paint her again, nearly 20 years later. Thalia 2 is part of a series about Identity and Containers. 2024
The figure's body, though beautifully formed, appears enclosed within a framework of ambiguous blue planes. These planes may symbolize societal pressures or external expectations that attempt to define the figure's identity. despite the external pressure, Thalia also speaks to the internal struggle. The inward curve of her body suggests a contemplation of self-perception and self-imposed beliefs. We are often our harshest critics, constructing barriers of shame, self-doubt, or rigid self-concepts. The painting invites viewers to question how much of this confinement is truly external and how much comes from the internal dialogue we cannot escape.
Thalia is a model I worked with in Chicago many years ago. I recently found photos I'd taken of her and decided to paint her again, nearly 20 years later. Thalia 1 is part of a series about Identity and Containers. 2024
The way she holds herself embodies the tension of being both defiant and exposed, signifying the struggle of breaking free from internalized beliefs. The ground plane she sits on is an unstable, undefined space, hinting at the precarious balance of identity while breaking free from the expectations or stories imposed by oneself or others.
Hector is a raven friend who lives in Moss Beach, CA at the same ranch where I keep my horse, Patron. He sought out a relationship with me and my horse, and I've done numerous paintings and studies of him as a result.
This pose is a fleeting moment of stillness before motion - a breath before a decision. The surrounding space remains ambiguous, evoking a quiet tension and inviting viewers to reflect on the raven's symbolism—perhaps as a silent observer or a harbinger of change. The composition suggests a moment suspended between pause and movement.
“Gideon 3”
“Hector- study in pink shade”
“Thalia 2”
“Thalia 1”
“Hector 3”
