BORN: Guildford (1981) LIVES AND WORKS: Surrey EDUCATION: University of the Creative Arts
EXHIBITIONS: ArtGemini Prize (2015), Portrait 16 (2016), Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year (2017), The Ruth Borchard Self-Portrait Prize (2017), The Wallace Collection (2017) AWARDS: London Contemporary Art Prize (2017) Some of Emma’s earliest memories are of her with a paintbrush in her hand or drawing on her bedroom wall. After graduating with a fine art degree in 2005, she moved to Umbria in Italy with a rucksack of art supplies. It was here, at a studio once used by the High Renaissance painter Raphael, that her love of figurative painting blossomed. Upon her return, Emma held a solo exhibition of 38 portraits at the Watts Gallery in Surrey. She went on to appear as a contestant on Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year, painting the film star Richard E. Grant. Her work is also owned by the British Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies. She is moved by a compulsive urge to create and the challenge of capturing an emotion. For her, painting is as innate as breathing. She loves the feeling of oil paint between her fingers and the way the colours move and blend. Through her artworks, she captures the juxtaposition of internal dialogue and outward portrayal. Emma says: “It’s finding a peace floating in the middle…this is where the beauty is. I love the Francis Bacon quote, ‘In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present’. I have embraced this fully, dancing with my demons the only way I know how – with my paintbrush in hand.”
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