WHEN 28-year-old Raimund Rausch left his job as a project officer at a large firm two years ago, it was with one goal in mind: To escape the monotony of a ‘nine-to-five’, and to follow his passion as an artist. And though he admits that paying work does not come along as steadily as would the remuneration of that ‘nine-to-five’, it is the fact that he gets to live his passion that drives him as an artist.

In fact, Raimund is about to take the biggest step of his fledgling art career, by representing Guyana at the upcoming Regional Art Show, “Integration through Art” in Port of Spain, Trinidad.
Scheduled for June 22-28, the seven-day exhibition is the first of its kind, and was organised by Trinidad-based Guyanese artist, Damian Moore.
Geared to providing a platform for both emerging and established male artists in the Caribbean region to showcase their work, the event will also feature a seminar aimed at coaching the artists on how to survive in the current socio-economic and cultural climate.
Apart from Damion, Raimund is the only Guyanese whose work will be featured at the regional event, and he is excited to represent his country.
“It is indeed a privilege to be among these established artists,” Raimund told The Buzz. “This is my first trip out of Guyana to show my work, so to have that title as an ambassador is a bit nerve wracking; but I’m up for it.”
Though he has been known to be an avid sketcher since his boyhood days, it was only three years ago that he really took himself seriously as an artist.
“REDD entertainment asked me to design a background for them to use for the show, then they invited me to showcase my work, and I saw it as a significant opportunity,” he said.
Since then, the budding artist has honed his skills, using self-taught methods, and is now practising his craft full-time.
“Leaving my job was a big risk,” he said, “but I wanted to push myself more, despite that. If you want to succeed and have your dreams out there, you need to make a sacrifice.

“I was over the whole mundane life that repeats itself daily; so, instead of being there, I decided to do what I love doing.” Not only does Raimund love what he’s doing, he also admits that committing himself solely to the arts has taught him more about who is in the last two years than he has ever learned in his life.
“I have developed more patience with who I am, and I have learned better self-expression. It’s a learning process, but I’m loving every step of it,” he said.
Raimund refers to himself as a mixed- medium artist, and can often be found experimenting with water colour, charcoal and other mediums that send his intended message to his audience in the most appropriate way.
As he embarks on this significant journey, it is not in search of accolades, but to represent beautiful Guyana through his art, and to become even more in tune with his inner artist.