Rae’s PR career began in London in 2005 as the PR Director for Antipodium, an agency (later its own brand) that represented Australian and New Zealand designers, promoting and selling them into the UK, Europe and Japan. The agency also had a shop in Shoreditch that later moved to Soho stocking Antipodean designers, and her key clients included Zimmermann, Zambesi, Karen Walker, Gail Sorronda who she introduced to high profile media opportunities including Vogue, i-D, Dazed & Confused, Another and GQ, as well as early introductions to the first wave of influencers including journalist and blogger Susie Bubble.
Prior to the inception of Utopia Vision in 2020, Rae managed a diverse spectrum of fashion and lifestyle clients from 2007-2020 for her former business Little Hero, which was one of Australia’s leading PR agencies, recognised for its dynamic, creative mix of designers and brands.
From 2018-2021, Rae directed the PR for the Sherman Centre for Culture and Ideas (SCCI) for its inaugural Fashion and Architecture Hubs, an event series with highly acclaimed programming including Kengo Kuma, Sou Fujimoto, Odile Decq, Akira Minagawa, Masataka Hosoo, John McAslan, artist Michael Rakowitz and Vogue China Editor, Angelica Cheung.
Architecture clients locally have included Durbach Block Jaggers including the PR for Phoenix Central Park, as well as consultation for Grimshaw and a special project for Stanislava Pinchuk with the Sydney Opera House, also the launch of the Soma retreat space in Byron Bay.
From 2021-2023, Rae directed the PR for Performance Space’s pinnacle event the Liveworks Festival presenting works from artists across performance, music, installation, dance, screen, conversation including Rainbow Chan, Amrita Hepi, Stereogamous, Day for Night and Sue Healey.
Senior strategic consultation since 2016 for leading agencies including Articulate, Design Communication Associates, Andpeople, Positive Feedback, Right Angle and Antonia Leigh across the arts, music and architecture has included campaigns and projects with major cultural institutions, organisations and architectural firms.
Her work as an Account Director for leading arts PR agency Articulate from 2015-2019 has included campaigns for some of the most respected names in the industry, Carriageworks, Biennale of Sydney, Powerhouse, Sydney Contemporary, Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Studio Chris Fox and the Keir Choreographic Award.
Rae is recognised for the production of a vast repertoire of impactful events where she continues to carve out a space for creativity to collide with commerce as a meaningful form of communication and influence.
From 2022-2023, Rae contracted as the Senior Creative Producer for Groundswell, a community of people passionate about climate action, pooling money and making grants to organisations tackling climate change in Australia. Events included a Melbourne launch at the Collingwood Children’s Farm with performances by Paul Kelly and Ziggy Ramo, the Heron Island Fellowship with Climate Council and the Spring Bay Mill, Tasmania Fellowship as well as work across campaigns for World Environment Day.
In early 2020 at the peak of the Australian bushfire season, Rae concepted and co-produced 'HOME' a bushfire relief fundraiser with Sam Watson Wood at the National Art School. HOME was a one night only exhibition and art auction event with 67 leading and emerging artist works including Mike Parr, Tony Albert, Reko Rennie, Stanislava Pinchuk, Janet Laurence, Nell, Del Kathryn Barton, Joan Ross, Ramesh Mario and Ben Quilty. The event raised a quarter of a million dollars for nominated organisations WWF Australia, Climate Council and Firesticks Alliance.
Her agency Little Hero co-produced and managed the strategic PR for up to eight Australian Fashion Week shows a year from 2007-2015 collaborating with the boldest and brightest designers. Highlights included shaping the profile of national treasures Romance Was Born over nine years with their iconic off site runway shows culminating in her final show with them in collaboration with Linda Jackson at the Art Gallery of NSW in 2015. Rae concepted and realised the re-launch of iconic designer Jenny Kee in 2012 with a show at Australian Fashion Week that celebrated her archives.
Rae was an early adopter in the industry working with the powerful shift and impact of social media platforms, online publications and individuals of influence to tell brand stories for clients. Work for Little Hero also included innovating for brand giants including adidas and Levi's with multiple events, PR and collaborations spanning many years.
In 2018, she launched a high leisurewear fashion collection CLDL for Australian band Client Liaison with an off site industry show at Australian Fashion Week at the Overseas Passenger Terminal in The Rocks, Sydney. The band performed on the runway and broadcast their show live via Facebook to their direct audience then offered the collection through pop up concept stores nationally. Rae managed the full scope of this project from ideation, design consultation for the collection, producing the pop up stores, garnering sponsorships, creative production and PR of the runway show.
In 2023 under Utopia Vision, Rae was the Creative Producer and PR for five shows at Australian Fashion Week garnering high profile results for designers Gail Sorronda, Gary Bigeni, Youkhana, VERNER and Nicol & Ford (including their debut in 2022), and also the presentation of INJURY x DeepFaith in 2022.
Rae lives the life of the ethos she represents, leading with dynamism and creative energy, her client portfolio and consultation work evolves with the spirit of the time, her interests and values.
Rae has a Bachelor of Media Arts and maintains her own fine art practice specialising in film photography which contributes to her understanding of the nuances of working with artists and galleries. Solo exhibitions in 2022 and 2023 followed an artist residency with La Wayaka Current in the indigenous community of Coyo in the Atacama Desert in Chile and the Groundswell Heron Island Fellowship, both aim to connect artists with remote environments to make site-responsive work about environmental and philosophical questions of our time. She is a finalist in the Ravenswood Australian Women's Art Prize 2024 and a contributor for Doingbird Magazine. Her photography work can be seen here
