Raffaella’s process allows echoes of forms to seep through, just barely perceptible to the fully sighted viewer – male and female figures, flowers – emerging from the contours and shadows. The rising star has recently joined the roster of Flowers Gallery, who will hold a solo exhibition of her work, aptly titled, Faint Memories, in February next year. Showcasing a new body of acrylic and ink ‘memoryscapes’, she introduces tactile new materials like foil and leaf, Raffaella sees her works as “a release of emotions and expressions that reflect my experience of visual impairment, using soft, dusty colours and rough, tactile surfaces. I work with my hands as my primary visual aid, making critical marks and strokes on the canvas within a limited time before my eyes fatigue.”

Raffaella’s champion for The Wick is Matthew Flowers, Managing Director of Flowers Gallery. He said: “Bianca Raffaella’s work is deeply personal and moving, shaped by her unique perspective as a visually impaired artist and her intuitive, physical painting process. Her ability to distill and communicate fleeting impressions into beautiful, ethereal, textural compositions is remarkable. At Flowers Gallery, we are proud to champion Bianca’s extraordinary talent and her skill in creating work that resonates so deeply. Her upcoming exhibition, Faint Memories, will undoubtedly be a defining moment in her career, and I look forward to witnessing what I’m certain will be an exceptional artistic journey.”

This is an exciting new chapter for an artist who only exhibited her work publicly for the first time in 2021 – at the Royal Academy Summer Show. As for her ambitions, Rafaella says, “I aim to show the ‘fully sighted’ that having a visual impairment does not restrict one from being a visual artist. Through painting and drawing, I actively challenge viewers’ preconceptions about what a visually impaired artist can create and perceive. I believe that increasing exposure to different perspectives and experiences is essential for breaking down stigmas, barriers, and limitations in society.”