Cotton Studios

Rachel Cotton-Smith, daughter of Charlotte Cotton and Galen Cotton, grew up with a drawing utensil always in hand and a smile constantly on her face. She has a younger sister Rebecca who is now a new mother to Castello Gerrick born on February 21, 2008. She grew up in a little town called Americus located in South West Georgia. Now married for a year going on a lifetime to Alver Smith, Rachel and Al reside in Savannah, Georgia and have two beautiful babies; Cooper Laughton Smith, their one year old Mastiff puppy and Harvey Danger Cotton, their seven year old Calico Cat. With her husband and her “Children” by her side, Rachel has managed to pursue her art career. Art has always been just as important as chocolate and coffee in her life, so much that as a child the commercial breaks were the only thing that could interrupt her drawing time. “I was totally an art geek from the time I could hold a pencil” she says as she laughs aloud. Rachel is the type of person that you see and immediately a smile appears on your face because of her breezy and artistic personality that exudes absolute positivity. Outgoing and happy as she always is, Rachel has excelled in her art studies from early on winning awards and recognitions throughout her life. She attended Brenau University Women’s College located in Gainesville, Georgia studying studio art with an emphasis in ceramics and sculpture. During her time at Brenau, she participated in many competitions winning many awards in her field. One of her many achievements was the Heather Mercer Shaw Award in which she received recognition for winning the design created for a gold ring awarded to one outstanding graduate. As well as concentrating on her studies, Rachel also enjoyed being very involved in other University activities. She held the role of Student government just as she devotedly became part of the Sorority that goes by the name of Alpha Gamma Delta. In this group, she then effortlessly became the Vice President of Recruitment for the Sorority. Being able to juggle one more duty, she volunteered to hold the position of a docent, a type of gallery tour guide, in the university’s art gallery. Immediately after graduating from Brenau University Women’s College, Rachel whimsically took residency for one summer to teach art and counsel at an all girl’s summer camp in upstate New York. Soon after this adventure, Rachel took a well deserved month long break to backpack Europe. She found inspiration in the different cultures and sights in which she encountered amongst friends and European acquaintances. Although the experiences thus far had been fabulously stimulating, Rachel still wanted more. She felt that she still needed to accomplish something else so she made the decision to attend the Savannah College of Art and Design, this being the reason she fled to Savannah. SCAD is where she accumulated her Graduate Degree for illustration. Savannah is not only where she accomplished her highest level of education, but it is also where she met her loving husband. After working in printing and graphic design for three years and while keeping her illustration close by, Rachel and Al have decided to take off their shoes and stay awhile. Rachel is now happily running her own business, Cotton Studios, working as graphic designer, web designer, and illustrator. As she stays busy and focused running her studio, designing websites and logos, managing marketing materials, and producing paintings and illustrations for various jobs and clients, she still makes time for loving the married life and letting loose with her furry friends.