Rachel Whiteread

Dame Rachel Whiteread is an accom­plished sculp­tor and instal­la­tion artist hailing from London, England. She is best known for her monu­men­tal cast sculp­tures, which she creates to repre­sent nega­tive space. After study­ing sculp­ture at the Slade School of Fine Art, Whiteread began exhibit­ing in 1988, start­ing with small-scale inte­rior plaster cast sculp­tures and grad­u­ally scaling up to room-sized and even three-story buildings.

Whiteread’s career took off in 1993 with her work House, a cast of an entire home in concrete, which earned her the Turner Prize and the distinc­tion of becom­ing the first woman recip­i­ent of the award. She repre­sented Great Britain at the Venice Bien­nale in 1997, cement­ing her place as a prominent artist.

Among Whiteread’s signif­i­cant works are the Juden­platz Holo­caust Memo­r­ial in Vienna, a library-like struc­ture with shelves turned outward, and Unti­tled Monu­ment, a resin sculp­ture for the empty fourth plinth in London’s Trafalgar Square.

In recog­ni­tion of her contri­bu­tions to the art world, Whiteread was appointed Comman­der of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2006 and Dame Comman­der of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2019 Birthday Honours. 

Overall, Whiteread’s unique approach to sculp­ture and instal­la­tions continue to inspire and capti­vate audi­ences around the world.