Looking up through pink blossom trees to hear the bees Print

Emily, or Emz as she's become known, is the daughter of Wiltshire farmers with a fascination with the natural world. She's had a childhood chequered by disability but channelled her energy into a love of trees and learning how to truly look and observe the world, natural or otherwise. When a failed hip replacement and subsequent permanent disability was the catalyst that sent her to Durham University to read Politics, she mourned the art college route she had so longed for during her childhood. Spending her twenties working in the city and also in TV working on 7 productions with the incredible David Attenborough, she never stopped picking up her pencils when she needed some headspace. Emz started painting professionally after her daughter was born in 2017 and she has grown a successful and full commission book of oil paintings during the COVID pandemic. Alongside this, she's created series about her childhood and most recently a series called #GreenLondon - celebrating the green spaces in her wonderful city. Her most recent series, Look Up Trees, is a passion project born out of three miscarriages experienced over 18 months. Having been diagnosed with PTSD, Emz found herself turning to trees to help get herself back on track. Painting, sketching and making with her hands has afforded her a meditation-like focus and she's recently been practicing and learning all things mindfulness. In 2022 and beyond, Emz hopes to open up courses in mindful sketching in nature where she aims to help others with their mental health.