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Raquel Levy (1925-2014) was born in Gilbratar and grew up in Casablanca in a Spanish and French speaking family. 

She began her training as an artist at the Fine Arts School of Casablanca, and continued it in Paris at the Grande Chaumière in the studios of André Lhote and Henri Goetz. During her training, abstraction reveals itself to her. Raquel will devote herself to abstract art all her life in a search for the essential by erasing and simplifying more and more her creations. 

Raquel was a woman passionate about dance, reading and poetry. With an extraordinary energy, during her childhood, her mother even said to her: "What fire consumes you ?". 

The artist devoted herself to philosophy and Jewish thought, she even created a reflection and teaching group. Her travels have inspired her a lot, especially in Canada and the United States, where she discovered works by Mark Rothko, Sam Francis or Franz Kline. Abstract expressionism is definitely becoming one of her greatest sources of inspiration. 

She was surrounded by great writers, poets and artists: Pierre Soulages, Marcelin Pleynet, Philippe Sollers and Antonio Saura.

Raquel did not try to put herself forward at full force, she did not run after success and exposed little compared to the extent of her talent. Raquel lived her painting, it was even her living space. Reading and writing occupied a great place in her life, she founded in 1973 the publishing house Orange Export Ltd with Emmanuel Hocquard.

We can highlight two major exhibitions of Raquel, one at the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris in 1982, where she exhibited her large formats. And one at the Galerie Breteau in 1984, Phillipe Solers and Pierre Soulages were present at the opening.