ABOUT ME
The
Story
Farley Rentschler is an island girl… Born and raised on the isle of Manhattan. She is very much involved in art, film and matters of the ocean. Farley draws her inspiration and influence from her travels around the world, bringing to life these memories on her canvases. Her travels to 60+ countries have profoundly influenced her work, which has grown to encompass painting, photography, filmmaking and collage.
Farley’s love for painting started at a very young age when she was staying with her grandmother, Rita Mitchell, who hosted a painting class at her studio on Fishers Island in New York. Farley was asked to sit and pose for the students and today remembers, “The smell of turpentine and the vast array of colors on the palette had me hooked! At that moment I knew that this is what I wanted to do.”
1994-1997: Farley set out studying at The Purnell School for the Performing Arts in Pottersville, NJ, where she discovered a love for oil painting.
1997: She attended the Oxford Art and Architecture Program at Lady Margaret Hall, University of Oxford, England, followed by a year studying visual arts and art history at Pine Manor College in Chestnut Hill, MA.
Upon experiencing a New England winter, Farley relocated to South Florida where she got her Bachelor of Science in Design at Lynn University. She was president of Art Fusion International and the 2000 and 2001 nominee for the Watercolor Society Award, and exhibited her works during "From the Heart Art.”
2002: Farley moved to Savannah, GA, to pursue graduate studies in painting, historic preservation, and art history at Savannah College of Art and Design. While in Savannah, she was an art consultant for Elena Madden gallery and was a winner of the 2003 Sidewalk Arts Festival.
2006: Farley moved back to South Florida and became an art consultant at the Wyland Galleries in Key West and Fort Lauderdale. This is where she became well-versed in the style and techniques of various artists and mediums, with a special focus on the lost wax processes. She later became the gallery director for Studio Bottero in Palm Beach where she worked alongside artist Daniel Bottero.
Farley has shown at the Exhibit “A” Gallery in Savannah, in New York City, East Hampton, Key West, at the Delray Beach Center for the Arts in Delray Beach, at ArtSea Living Gallery & Studio in Boynton Beach, and at the Lighthouse ArtCenter Museum and School of Art in Jupiter.
She has completed commissions for many individuals and had a solo show in 2014 at Voit gallery on South County Road in Palm Beach.
2020: Farley completed her master’s degree in decorative arts at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London, with a dissertation on the Bergl Rooms at Schönbrunn Palace.
Always wanting to give back, Farley sits on several boards including Town of Palm Beach United Way, Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope in Palm Beach and American Heritage Center in Wyoming.
She has served as the Junior Chair for The Salvation Army of Palm Beach County’s Paradise Ball and is a Sustainer for the Junior League of the Palm Beaches.
Intermediate
Wanderlust wish list… I’m longing to spend more time in Africa. I would love to take Rovos Rail and wind up in San Camp in Botswana.
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Go-to dish… Rack of lamb in a well seasoned cast iron skillet
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Favorite restaurant… The Crow’s Nest in Montauk—arriving right before sunset to have a cocktail and watch the sun go down and then meandering back up to the main building and eating farm-to-table cuisine.
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Signature cocktail… Watermelon martini
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Recent splurge… Pomegranate bath salts from Santa Maria Novella—trust me, it was worth it.
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Favorite museum… The Wallace Collection
in London
During the busy winter season in Palm Beach, Farley can be found pouring her wanderlust and multi-chromatic experiences onto paper, wood and canvas from inside Studio 1608, a pastel pink haven for artists of varying disciplines nestled on Antique Row just two blocks south of the Norton Museum. But the summers find her at home in Europe with her globetrotting diplomat fiancé Anthony Bailey and their flock of silky chickens, creating works inspired by the dreamy destinations they visit together.
In the Studio
Photo by Nick Mele