Formation & Education
Rachel Estrada is a lifelong fine artist and creative. She specializes in crafting meaningful works that merge tradition, innovation, and storytelling. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Estrada spent her childhood immersed in the art world—attending the opening of the Petersen Automotive Museum to see her aunt’s photography exhibited, assisting her Emmy Award–winning art director uncle on summer productions at the Hollywood Bowl for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and watching her mother’s large-scale murals unfold across entire facades on beach houses throughout California. From an early age, she developed a deep appreciation for artistry as both inheritance and discipline. A foundation that continues to inform her practice today.
Rachel holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts—completing two art programs simultaneously in Florence, Italy, at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze and CSU Florence. At the Accademia—founded in 1563 by Cosimo I de’ Medici and with notable alumni such as Michelangelo—she earned a perfect score of 30 out of 30 studying painting in the Scuola di Pittura. The Accademia adjoins the Galleria dell’Accademia, home to Michelangelo’s David, situating Estrada within one of the most historically significant artistic institutions in the world. While in Florence, she spent half a year pursuing art history studies at the Uffizi Gallery, the city’s most prominent museum overlooking the Arno River. There, she observed master restorers working on paintings by Leonardo da Vinci and drew inspiration from pioneering women in art history, including Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, the celebrated portraitist to Marie Antoinette, whose works she encountered in the Vasari Corridor.
Exhibitions & Recognition
During this period, Rachel Estrada was honored with ‘The Rachel Show’, CSU Florence’s first senior art exhibition since the school’s founding 47 years earlier in 1966, held at Oibo, a flex creative space in Florence’s Piazza di Santa Croce. She was also featured in ARTRA, an exhibition showcasing select students from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze. Following graduation, Rachel Estrada has displayed in several shows, including ‘A Family of Artists’ hosted by the Art Directors’ Guild at Gallery 800 in Hollywood, ‘Kalediscopes’ hosted at Basic in San Diego, ‘The Opening’ at Cat + Raven in Los Angeles, and more.
Professional & Contemporary Practice
Rachel Estrada’s career has since spanned digital and fine art, uniting the sensibilities of painter, designer, and creative director. She has created and directed visual work for brands featured in Vanity Fair, W, Glamour, Goop, and Elle, as well as for labels carried by Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s. Estrada led the website redesign for $1.1B fashion brand, Torrid, a project with over 936 million views to date.
Estrada’s work reflects a lifelong commitment to excellence, authenticity, and the belief that art—whether created on canvas, in digital form, or within spatial environments—has the power to connect history, emotion, and identity.
Brands Featured In
Brands Sold Through
Interested in working together?
Reach out at chat@rachelestrada.com or fill out the form below