Printmaker and photographer Eleanor Rappe Raugust was born in Brooklyn, New York, on February 14, 1933. She received her B.A. from Brooklyn College and did post graduate work at San Francisco State University. She was a member of the San Francisco Society of Women Artists alongside Beth Van Hoesen, Emmy Lou Packard, Imogen Cunningham, and Dorr Bothwell, among others.

In 1975, after teaching at the Graphic Arts Workshop for several years, Rappe founded the Fort Mason Printmakers program; under her direction, the printmakers published one themed portfolio of color etchings each year, with text written by Rappe as well as her own etching contribution. She was the Chair of the Art Department at City College of San Francisco before retiring and moving to Santa Fe. There, she continues to be involved in arts scenes. Her work is included in the collection of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the United States Embassy in Moscow, among others.

Eleanor Rappe Raugust currently lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.