Tutor with passion for cats delivering online classes for the next generation of painters
“I have always loved painting cats and dogs because I grew up surrounded by them,” said the 38-year-old, who now lives in Spain.
“My pets have always been my biggest source of inspiration, and it made sense to start painting them for other people too. I have two dogs, Lola and Hairy Maclary, and two cats, Mocha and Morag. All are rescues.
“I lost my little dachshund this year at the age of 16, so I’m glad to have other animals to ease the grief.
“I also volunteer at a cat sanctuary here in the south of Spain, so cats are a big part of my life. I use my art to raise money for the shelter and I enjoy being in the company of cats when I go to clean it once a week.
“Anyone who loves cats knows just how special a creature they are. Just like us, they each have their personalities, good or bad.”
Emma and her partner live in the south of Spain
What began as a hobby developed into a passion for Emma, who has a degree from the University of the Creative Arts in Maidstone, Kent.
“It started with my pets when I was a child. They were always getting drawn and painted,” Emma said.
“I studied in Kent, graduating as an illustrator. I started doing portraits for friends and soon began to earn a small amount. It grew from there.
“I spent years promoting myself everywhere I could. I began to sell more work through exhibitions and galleries, and my work improved. I did workshops, market stalls, commissions and originals that I sold in galleries, and have written articles for art publications.
“My career has taken me more in the direction of video content. I had already moved much of my work online to accommodate my travels, so when Covid came, I was already working like this.
“Since then, I’ve been making YouTube and Patreon content, and I have helped lots of artists discover and progress in the medium of soft pastel.”
The artist has developed a product range with Unison Colour which is available to purchase on her website.
“Soft pastel is a fantastic medium, especially when painting animals,” she explained.
“You can achieve such softness with your marks. The strength of colour and the vibrancy is amazing.”
Emma gives online tutorials to aspiring artists
Emma’s pieces bear an uncanny resemblance to the subject matter, and she can recreate a remarkable likeness from looking at a photo.
“My detailed style takes many hours to create, and unless you’re painting a sleeping animal, it’s pretty difficult to get anything, besides maybe a sloth, to pose for long enough,” she said.
“Cats are the hardest to paint as they are also hard to photograph. It’s hard to capture a cat sometimes because the slightest change in their expression completely changes their face — a bit like when painting humans. The smallest millimetre out and it’s a different cat.”
Her online tutorials contain step-by-step guidance for people who would like follow in her footsteps.
“I have a YouTube channel where you can access quite a lot of videos for free, including some of my full-length paint along tutorials,” she revealed.
“Mocha my cat is on YouTube for everyone to try, and then I have a Patreon channel where my full library is available. There are many tutorials of cats, both domestic and wild, available for as little as €4 a month.”
One of Emma’s pastel pieces
Despite having dedicated countless hours of work to painting cats, Emma does not have a favourite piece.
“I suppose the recent two I did of my cats would be high on the list, and I’ll keep them for myself,” she said.
“Mocha and Morag have colourful histories, and I’m happy to have captured them in small head studies. Both were made into tutorials, and I’ve had the pleasure of seeing lots of artists’ renditions of my two scamps.”
Having left Northern Ireland to travel in a motorhome with her partner, Emma gravitated to the south of Spain, where they plan to “settle for the next while”.
“A lot of my tutorials feature commissioned portraits, but these days I am enjoying painting my own photo reference and working on projects I have wanted to do for a long time,” she added.
“I’m very fortunate that my tutorials allow me to paint what I want, including wildlife, landscape and still life.”
To try your hand at one of Emma’s tutorials, visit www.patreon.com/emmacolbertart or www.youtube.com/emmacolbertart
