Raquel Ormella, (born: Sydney,1969) is an installation artist working at the intersections of art and activism, investigating the means by which critical reflexivity in contemporary art encourages processes of self-examination regarding political consciousness and social action.
Her work 130 Davey Street , a series of drawings on whiteboards, investigated the Wilderness Society's use of wilderness photography and called into question the romanticised notion of the direct action activist and political artist embedded in the forest. 130 Davey Street, was shown at Artist's Space, New York, in the exhibition International Geographic; Cycle paths will abound in utopia , Australian Centre for Contemporary Art; Melbourne (2004) and at Mori Gallery Sydney. It won the New Social Commentaries prize at Warrnambool Regional Art Gallery in 2005.
Her work has been included in the 2003 Biennale of Istanbul and the 2002 Sao Paulo Biennale, Bittersweet at the Art Gallery of NSW (2002), Cycle Tracks will Abound in Utopia , ACCA Melbourne (2004), as well as in the exhibition C'town Bling , Campbelltown Arts Centre (2005). She has held recent solo exhibitions at Mori Gallery, Sydney; Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces, Melbourne; and Casula Powerhouse, Sydney.
She has a research Master of Fine Arts from the University of Western Sydney, and is currently teaching at ANU School of Art in the Painting Workshop. She is represented by Mori Gallery, Sydney.
