Rainey is a lifelong illustrator.  She had her first solo shows in grammar school and  high school.  Her first commissions came at age 16.  She studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, The University of Chicago, and IIT’s School of Design.    

Coaching creativity in others dominated her business life for years.  In 2003, her husband and an amazing group of friends prompted the leap of faith to paint full time.  Artists Joan Hasselman, Frankie Johnson, Thia Malenchik, and Bob Burridge have been a huge encouragement.

Rainey explores a zest for color, energy and stories with her work.  “I paint every day, with a body of work increasingly joyful to me, well received by critics and a growing list of wonderful collectors)”  Always at its heart lies her unique exuberance and storytelling ability.  Her goal is to engage the viewer’s imagination in a spirited story filled with light and lush colors----one at ease and perhaps amused with itself. 


Rainey’s award-winning paintings have been exhibited throughout Illinois (Woodstock, Lake Zurich, Long Grove, Hyde Park, and Lake Forest, Illinois.)  Her works hang in private collections in Illinois, Florida, California, Hawaii,  and North Carolina. 

“Dancing with Paint” workshops were designed with dear friend and collaborator Toby Berkun Weber.   The invitation is simply to "Come Paint".   Action learning- playing and learning together-   is a delightful experience, one crafted in decades of coaching.    In a free, fanciful way, Dancing with Paint teaches life lessons about fear and fun, working hard and relaxing. The painting process is a joy.  Dancing with Paint is  designed for two groups of people.  The first are painters who want to loosen up and have more fun in the painting process. The second group are people who have  a desire to paint, but somehow can’t quite get started.