About

Hi, I’m Rachel - founder of Flowersmith here in Austin, and the artist behind Connected Dots Project.

I’ve always turned to art, nature and my community to make sense of the world, and lately the world has felt… complicated. Politically, socially, and environmentally, these are heavy times. I’ve felt the disconnect - between people, between values, between what we care about and what we feel we can actually influence.

Like many, I kept asking:

• How do we bring together the humans who believe in kindness, science, nature, history, beauty, hope, art and community?

• How do we protect what we love and feel less alone doing it?

In the summer of 2025 I was experimenting with techniques on clay. I used photos and colors on a clay slab and incorporated other tools from some of my other artistic pursuits, such as antique candy rollers and vintage leather craft tools, as the base to show a feeling, a story, a frustration. Soon I started forming these into objects and liked the outcome. 

The next several months, as my frustrations with our political environment grew, I was seeking connection to others who shared my values. I reached out to friends and family who might not be hearing the same news that I did. We talked, I was refreshed, yet the underlying causes of my frustrations were growing. So, I wanted to talk about it through my art. Share thoughts and stories and connect. 

I’m a fan of bringing people together, I love dinner parties, book clubs, workout groups. Why not use my art to unite people. People I know and people around the world who I've never met but would connect on some basics, such as kindness, truth in science and history, art, nature and taking care of the earth.  

I’m a bracelet-wearing girlie, so creating something to wear with ceramics came to me. My colorful slabs of clay, full of texture and life seemed worth sharing. So I made cool art on a slab of clay and then cut it cookie-cutter style into little circles. After many trials, I figured out how to create what is essentially a bead, a dot. Many circles, many dots, out of the same picture. A dot with a slice of a story, because aren’t we all a part of a bigger story? Let’s connect the dots for comfort, for change.

My hope is that your dot sparks a conversation, inspires a moment of kindness, nudges a call to action - or simply sits on your wrist as a tiny piece of art that reminds you what you value.

Thanks for being here. We build connection one dot at a time.

- Rachel