This brings us to present day where a sudden urge to publish this sleuthing has finally propelled me to start organizing this narrative. I have since stopped looking for new information and leads, however, I am optimistic about uncovering more details over time. Perhaps a wave of inspiration will one day point me in a new direction for further research on this fascinating individual.
For my older friends, does any of this sound familiar or conjure up a memory? Have you seen Rafael’s insignia before? I have yet to speak with anyone who is familiar with Rafael’s work but the world is a funny place, so we’ll see what comes up in the future.
Once you become familiar with Rafael’s work, it’s easy to spot it in the wild. I can’t remember how I came across this website, however, as soon as the page loaded, I instantly recognized her necklace and was surprised by the discovery. Did she find it through a collector or auction site, or a thrift store, or did she buy it when she was younger? So many questions.
At this point, with a decent biography in hand, only a couple of questions remain: was Rafael intentionally forgotten, or is his lack of living memory simply a byproduct of dying demographics and other sociocultural factors? If there is a demonstrable market for his interesting and high-quality pieces, why isn’t he celebrated as a Canadian fashion icon? It’s not like we have a never-ending list of notable designers or jewellers to bury him under, and because he’s shaken hands with some influential people, you would think his name would appear more often than it does. Aside from the handful of collectors and bloggers that keep his name alive, Rafael’s work and fame has largely been erased due to a lack of internet presence, beyond Pinterest that is. This is partly what inspired me to write this entire story: food for web-crawlers and hopefully, another search result to serve as a modest celebration of Rafael’s legacy.
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