Fiona Rae British, b. 1963

Fiona Rae (1963-) is a contemporary British artist notably associated with the Young British Artist movement. Born in Hong Kong, Rae attended the Croydon College of Art and gained her BFA from Goldsmiths College in 1987. She was part of the landmark exhibitions ‘Freeze’ and ‘Sensation’ which boosted the YBAs into public and critical acclaim. In 1991, Rae was nominated for the Turner Prize and served as a Tate Artist Trustee from 2005 to 2009. She was elected as a Royal Academician in 2002 and served as the first female Professor of Painting at the Royal Academy Schools from 2011 to 2015. Rae has been extensively displayed around the globe, including the UK, Europe, USA, China and Singapore, and her works are featured in collections across Europe and the US. 

Rae is known for her abstract paintings that feature humorous and insightful commentary into contemporary visual and cultural paradigms. Her works are often derived from pop culture imagery and new technologies, reinterpreting familiar elements into an elusive semiotic code. Her approach rejects the conventions of modernist painting and tests the limits of abstract art while her integration of popular media provides a familiar starting point for viewers. The artist currently lives and works in London. 

Bibliography

Artnet (2023). Fiona Rae. [online] Artnet.com. Available at: https://www.artnet.com/artists/fiona-rae/ [Accessed 22 Sept. 2026].

Buchmann Galerie (2024). Fiona Rae. [online] Buchmann Galerie. Available at: https://buchmanngalerie.com/artists/fiona-rae [Accessed 22 Sept. 2026].

Fiona-rae.com. (2015). Biography | Fiona Rae. [online] Available at: https://fiona-rae.com/information/biography/ [Accessed 22 Sept. 2026].

Royal Academy of Arts (n.d.). Fiona Rae. [online] www.royalacademy.org.uk. Available at: https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/fiona-rae-ra [Accessed 22 Sept. 2026].