Rainy Bray-Hopwood

I was born in the heart of the Ozarks, in Fayetteville, Arkansas. I grew up going to the river on the weekends and spending summer nights catching fireflies till I was covered in chigger bites and ticks.

I pull inspiration from the Ozark wilderness into my art, seeking truth and beauty in the world around me. I primarily work in clay, enjoying the deep history and connection to the earth innate to the medium, but I also venture into the mediums of paint, photography, and quilting. Through my work, I want to share the experience of growing up in an area that has breathtaking wilderness and values it deeply.

In 2017 I was working three jobs and on the fast track to burn out. On a whim I took an evening pottery class as a way to decompress and give myself something other than work to do on a weekly basis. Little did I know I would fall head over heels into the world of pottery. Just one year and thousands of hours of practice later, I decided to take the leap, quit my day job, and open a community studio. My mission was (and is) to explore my art and pass it on. This became the mission for Fifth Street Studio.

As Fifth Street Studio became established in the community, our team saw the opportunity to host a biannual event—Fifth Market. We began by inviting just 12 other local artists for a pilot market, and our community showed up! It quickly became a beloved community event. Since the first Market in spring of 2020, the Market has expanded its outreach and most recently we hosted our Fall Market in September 2023 which had over 1,500 attendees and 74 makers from Northwest Arkansas.