Bio

Emma O’Rourke (b. 1987) is a London Irish diaspora artist working with the human condition, archival material and narrative. Her practice focuses on drawing and painting, delicately assembling often indistinguishable forms - otherworldly beings eager to find their place. Her work and research sheds light on the theme of dependency, what it means to belong and being displaced as a physiological state.

Emma is a graduate of Wimbledon College of Art and has an MA from the University of Manchester in Museum Studies. She is currently undertaking the Turps Art School Correspondence Course and previously completed two years at the Essential School of Painting, Wood Green.

Emma was born in Brent where she exhibited her solo show V E S S E L S at Willesden Gallery in 2022. The exhibition was inspired by Brent Museum and Archives where she undertook a body of research into the history of Irish migration to London, the mental health challenges faced, and the traditions and values passed down without explanation. She speaks of a sense of displacement - not British but without an Irish accent - identifying with the Irish diaspora.

Her work is fuelled by stories, both autobiographical and anecdotal, moments and memories without physical shape - acknowledging the limitations of language.

Her practice turned a pivotal point after the birth of her son in 2018 fuelling a sense of urgency and newfound relevance. Her drawings and paintings express a yearning to make sense of the past through our messy day-to-day existence.

She is represented by Cicek Gallery and based at Second Floor Studios and Arts, Wembley Park, London.

Artist Statement

Drawing has been instinctive from a young age. I am influenced by the work of Hilma af Klint, Emma Talbot and Otobong Nkanga - artists whose drawings display a visual confidence. I draw from my surroundings everyday - an intimate memory log - often forming the backbone of my paintings.

Growing up in an Irish Catholic household, traditions and values were passed down without explanation - fuelling a lifelong preoccupation with the fragility of our existence. I am forever consumed with the human condition, our complicated relationship with nostalgia, and the narratives we hold onto.

The eldest grandchild, I spent a lot of time with my nan, a woman who confidently blurred the lines between fact and fiction, weaving unexplained ‘truths’ into every scenario. I dissolved into a world of stories, engrossed in everyday fantasies, steamy scandals and fallen heroes, which later led me to study Theatre Design.

My work is often shaped by filmic imagery, literature, and archival material - images and thoughts embedded into our subconscious. I like to play with vivid colours, painting energetically and light of touch - placing particular importance on transparency and the layering of materials and brushstrokes. The final outcome merges our internal worlds with natural forms to create surreal yet familiar images, hinting at our own inevitable disorderly decline.

Education

Turps Art School, Correspondence Course, 2022-23

The Essential School of Painting, The Bigger Picture & Contemporary Fine Art, 2020-22

University of Manchester, United Kingdom, MA Art Gallery and Museum Studies, 2011-12

Wimbledon College of Art, University of the Arts London, BA(hons) Theatre: Design for Performance, First Class, 2007-10

Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, Foundation Diploma in Art and Design, 2006-07

Solo Exhibitions

2022

V E S S E L S, Willesden Gallery, Brent, London

P A P E R, The Stables Gallery, Reveley Lodge Trust, Hertfordshire

Selected Group Exhibitions

2023

Do you hear us…are you listening? Online Exhibition, Spilt Milk Gallery

All Great Ideas Start in a Garage, Cicek Gallery, Soho & Shoreditch

Do Not Swallow, Safehouse 1 & 2, Peckham, London

Under Their Skin, One Paved Court, Richmond, London

Cicek Art Fair, Unit 3 & The Landing Gallery, South Tottenham, London

Drawing Open 2023, No Format Gallery, Deptford, London

VISION-ARY, The Earth Vision Charity Exhibition, 13 Soho Square, London

Last Minute, The Earth Vision and Cicek Gallery, 13 Soho Square, London

2022

Painting Open 2022, No Format Gallery, Deptford, London

Art Matters, The ESOP, The Art Pavilion, Mile End, London

Drawing Open 2022, No Format Gallery, Deptford, London

Mythical Political, The Firestation Creative, Dunfermline, Scotland

2021

Art Matters, The ESOP, The Art Pavilion, Mile End, London

SPLINT! group show, David Mach RA studio, Havelock Walk, Forest Hill, London

Sydenham Artists Trail, Sydenham, London