An Interview with Artist Emily Heard
Q: When did your love of art first blossom?
A: I have loved art all of my life, and vividly remember being no more than five years old staring at a picture on a wall, utterly transfixed. It was probably just a doodle done by a slightly older kid at school, but all I could think was 'I wish I could do that'. From that moment I knew that all I really wanted was to learn how to draw and paint, and I am still learning every single day! It really became something I seriously wanted to pursue outside of being just a hobby about 3 years ago when I began teaching myself to paint using oils and acrylics. When I discovered I was OBSESSED with colour it sort of spiraled from there, and I haven't really looked back since.
Q: What inspires your creativity the most?
A: On a very basic level, things I think are beautiful. I am fascinated by the sky, dappled light, pretty colours, and LOVE animals and their unique little characters. I also love soft, whimsical, feminine portraits, and mermaids (because who doesn't like mermaids, right?) But what is more important is that I need to feel some kind of emotional connection to what I paint. That's when I really want to chuck paint about the canvas. Music plays a fairly important part in this for me too.
Q: We adore your colourful and whimsical artworks, particularly the gorgeous portrait of a mermaid which we understand was inspired by an image you found via Whim! Please tell us a little more about the process you went through to produce this stunning portrait?
A: I don't usually have a specific process for my paintings and am generally happiest approaching my work impulsively. Having said that I was really happy when I discovered Whim and the incredible amount of inspiration that is literally jumping off the pages. I felt inspired to combine two of my favourite things - bright colours and mermaids. Mermaids make a really fun subject for me, because painting them sort of takes me back to the childlike wonder and belief in magic that you have as a child, and there's something kind of magical about painting fairytale creatures - an escape from reality into your own little dream world.
Whilst my painting style generally leans towards contemporary impressionism, I wanted the detail of the piece to be in the mermaid figure, rather than the background. I wanted the background to be a little celebration of colour, and the bright mixture of colours to represent a kind of bright and beautiful dream world that fantasies exist in.
Q: We also understand that you originally studied psychology before making the big leap to pursue your passion of art. What advice would you give to others wishing to leave their office job and pursue what makes them most happy?
A: I am not actually a full-time artist yet, and pursue my art in my spare time! Having said that, I have made lots of progress towards the dream in a relatively short space of time, with several solo exhibitions in the last few years, and a commission for a famous actor.I read somewhere that 'when you buy a piece of art you're buying more than an object. You're buying hundreds of hours of errors and experimentation. You're buying years of frustration and moments of pure joy. You're not just buying one thing; you are buying a piece of a heart, a piece of a soul...a small piece of someone else's life' - Couldn't agree more with this quote.
Painting is a challenge, a passion, an enemy and a close friend to me. It makes me happy and scared all at the same time. When you share your art with others, you are sharing an incredibly vulnerable side to yourself. You've spent hours on a piece, with the hope that someone else will like what you have created - but there's every chance that some won't. Art is incredibly subjective like that, and you need to remember you cannot please everyone.
Basically, don't expect it to be easy. It won't be. It'll be hard work and scary at times. You have to do everything from painting to marketing to accounts. You'll probably have days where you just think 'why do I bother, I suck' (usually after looking at other artists' work) But take each day as it comes, don't give up, and it will be worth it :)
Oh and get on all the right channels - Facebook and Instagram. That's pretty important too!!
Q: What does an average day in the life of Emily look like?
A: An average morning generally consists of feeding my two little Guinea Pigs (Chewbacca and Doodles) and checking my art social media accounts and emails before a heading out for the day job (in an office). When I get home for the evening, usually manic painting begins (particularly if I have an exhibition coming up with commissions to get through).
When you are balancing your art with a full time day job, unless you have a time machine, you need to be very organised and very motivated. I usually try and dedicate a certain amount of time each evening to creating and becoming a human paint brush (no matter how hard I try, I always get paint EVERYWHERE). Alongside this, I try to make time to post updates to my social media channels and blog, as well as maintain my website and research opportunities (although I would be the first to admit that at times I can let this slide a little if I am in the midst of building a new collection of work).
Q: Lastly, what do you hope to achieve with your art career in the not-too-distant future; do you have any exciting, upcoming plans that you would like to share with us?
A: I'm currently working on a new collection of paintings, within which I'm hoping to improve my technique and learn a few tricks along the way. I'd love to get a really strong and consistent body of work together ready to start approaching art publishing companies with. Watch this space I guess - everyday is a weird and exciting journey when you paint :)
We want to thank Emily for taking the time to answer our interview questions and we encourage you to check out more of her stunning artworks by visiting her website and following along on Facebook and Instagram (@emilylouise_art). Enjoy!