Rachel Owen

Rachel Mary Owen (30 November 1968 – 18 December 2016) was a Welsh photographer, printmaker and lecturer on medieval Italian literature. She was married to Radiohead singer Thom Yorke.

Rachel Owen
Born
Rachel Mary Owen

30 November 1968
Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom
Died18 December 2016 (aged 48)
Spouse(s)Thom Yorke
Children2
Websiterachel-owen.co.uk

Life and career

Owen was born in Cardiff, Wales.[1] She received a B.A. (Hons) in Italian and Fine Art (Painting) specialising in Printmaking, from the University of Exeter.[2] In the 1990s she lived in Florence with two students and studied painting at the Accademia di Belle Arti of Florence, where she fell in love with Dante's work.[3] In 2001, Owen received a PhD from the University of London, where her research was on the illustrations in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.[4]

Owen was a lecturer in Italian with a focus on medieval Italian literature, where she examined illustration and its reception in Dante's Divine Comedy.[5] She taught art history and Dante studies for visiting students at University of Oxford.[6] She was also a fine-art printmaker,[7] and a member of the Oxford Printmakers Co-operative.[8][9] She mixed photography with printmaking[10] and her work explored ideas of transformation using photographic screenprints.[9] Her artwork was used on the cover of the 1993 Radiohead single "Pop Is Dead," included in the rerelease of their debut album Pablo Honey.[11]

Personal life

For 23 years Owen was in a relationship with Radiohead singer Thom Yorke, whom she met while they were students at the University of Exeter.[12][13][14] She and Yorke had a son, Noah, born in 2001, and a daughter, Agnes, born in 2004.[15] According to The Times, Owen and Yorke married in May 2003 in Oxfordshire in a secret ceremony which was not reported to the media.[16] In August 2015, the couple announced they had separated amicably "after 23 highly creative and happy years".[17] Several critics believed the separation influenced the lyrics of Radiohead's 2016 album A Moon Shaped Pool.[18][19][20] Owen also influenced the lyrics of Radiohead songs such as "I Might Be Wrong"[21] and "Optimistic".[22]

Death

Owen died of cancer on 18 December 2016 at the age of 48.[14] She continued to teach Italian into her final months.[23] Radiohead dedicated the 2017 OKNOTOK reissue of their 1997 album OK Computer to her memory.[24]

Works

Exhibition
  • 2015: Ballon Rouge Art, Thame, Oxfordshire, England, 7–15 November 2015[25]

Papers
  • Owen, Rachel Mary (2001). Illuminated Manuscripts of Dante's Commedia (1330–1490) in Their Cultural and Artistic Context (PhD). Royal Holloway, University of London. OCLC 556889838.
  • Owen, Rachel; Calè, Luisa (2007). "The Image of Dante, Poet and Pilgrim". In Braida, Antonella (ed.). Dante on View: The Reception of Dante in the Visual and Performing Arts. London: Ashgate. pp. 83–94. ISBN 978-0-7546-5896-2. OCLC 83609616.
  • Owen, Rachel (2001). Honess, Claire E. (ed.). "Dante's Reception by 14th- and 15th-century Illustrators of the Commedia" (PDF). Reading Medieval Studies. Graduate Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Reading. XXVII: 163–225. ISBN 978-0-704-91215-1. ISSN 0950-3129. OCLC 50612171.

References
  1. Gurpreet Narwan, Fariha Karim (24 December 2016). "Marriage secret of Radiohead star and the woman he lost to cancer". The Times. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  2. "Art Exhibition 'Rachel Owen: The Inferno Illustrations'". www.pmb.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  3. Paloscia, Fulvio (23 September 2012). "Rachel, l'altra artista di casa Yorke "A Firenze mi innamorai di Dante"". la Repubblica (in Italian). Firenze.
  4. Owen, Rachel Mary (2001). Illuminated Manuscripts of Dante's Commedia (1330–1490) in Their Cultural and Artistic Context (PhD). Royal Holloway, University of London. OCLC 556889838.
  5. "Dr Rachel Owen (1968–2016)". Pembroke College, Oxford. 19 December 2016.
  6. Owen, Rachel; Calè, Luisa (2007). "The Image of Dante, Poet and Pilgrim". In Braida, Antonella (ed.). Dante on View: The Reception of Dante in the Visual and Performing Arts. London: Ashgate. pp. 83–94. ISBN 978-0-7546-5896-2. OCLC 83609616.
  7. "Rachel Owen: Biography". RachelOwen.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 July 2008.
  8. Ray, Emily (20 December 2016). "Dr. Rachel Owen: 1968–2016. Partner of Radiohead's Thom Yorke Was Accomplished Printmaker". Paste.
  9. Owen, Rachel. "Rachel Owen: Artist Statement". Oxford Printmakers Co-operative.
  10. Slawson, Nicola (20 December 2016). "Thom Yorke's ex-partner Rachel Owen dies at 48". The Guardian.
  11. Fitzmaurice, Larry (15 January 2009). "Radiohead's First Three Albums Reissued with Extras". Spin.
  12. Randall, Mac (2012). Exit Music: The Radiohead Story (Updated 4th ed.). Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-1-458-47147-5. OCLC 946707168.
  13. Binelli, Mark (7 February 2008). "The Future According to Radiohead: How they ditched the record business and still topped the charts". Rolling Stone.
  14. Vincent, Alice (20 December 2016). "Thom Yorke's ex-partner, Rachel Owen, dies aged 48". The Daily Telegraph.
  15. McLean, Craig (17 June 2006). "Thom Yorke: 'It's not my job to do business with politicians'". The Guardian.
  16. Narwan, Gurpreet; Karim, Fariha (24 December 2016). "Marriage secret of Radiohead star and the woman he lost to cancer". The Times. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
  17. NME News Desk (15 August 2015). "Thom Yorke and Rachel Owen announce separation". NME.
  18. Hughes, Tim (20 December 2016). "Tribute paid to Dr Rachel Owen, artist, academic and former partner of Radiohead's Thom Yorke, who has died". Oxford Mail.
  19. Leight, Elias (20 December 2016). "Dr. Rachel Owen, Former Partner of Thom Yorke, Dead at Age 48". Rolling Stone.
  20. Larson, Jeremy D. (9 May 2016). "Radiohead's A Moon Shaped Pool: The 5 Most Important Things To Know". Pitchfork. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  21. Kent, Nick (June 2001). "Happy now?". Mojo. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  22. Cavanagh, David (October 2000). "I Can See The Monsters". Q: 96–104.
  23. Mohdin, Aamna (22 September 2019). "Thom Yorke: how I coped with ex-partner's death". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  24. Cook-Wilson, Winston (22 June 2017). "Radiohead's OKNOTOK Dedicated to Thom Yorke's Late Partner Rachel Owen". Spin. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
  25. "Thom Yorke's Ex-Partner Rachel Owen Loses Her Battle With Cancer". viveremilano.biz. Archived from the original on 1 November 2017.
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