Meet The Artist!
Hi, I’m Emma!
a watercolor artist based in Ontario Canada, and I’m passionate about helping people reconnect with their creativity through painting. I fell in love with watercolor back in 2016. What started as way to seek peace through creativity for my mental health, quickly turned into a huge part of my life—and now, my full-time career!
My painting style is loose, vibrant, and nature-inspired. I love capturing the beauty of flowers, landscapes, and everyday moments in a way that feels free and approachable. For me, watercolor is less about perfection and more about the joy of experimenting and expressing yourself.
Through my YouTube channel and online platforms, I share tutorials, tips, and real-time painting sessions to help others feel confident picking up a brush. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to try something new, my goal is to make watercolor fun, simple, and stress-free.
When I’m not painting, you can find me chasing around my two little boys who love to keep me on my toes!
Thank you so much for being here, can’t wait to paint together!
The Early Days
For as long as I can remember I was always one who gravitated towards art. As a little girl I would fill sketchbook after sketchbook with doodles of my dolls and characters of stories I would create. Throughout school if there was a creative element to a project, I was always on it. And if there wasn’t, I was probably daydreaming and sketching when I shouldn’t have been. It was then that my mom decided that attending an arts high school was the best fit for me. And it was! However, taking visual arts as a class was not my cup of tea. Being graded on my art rubbed me the wrong way when for so long it had been a creative outlet that helped me with my mental health. Looking back, I feel like art was an escape for me. A way to cope through life’s tough moments, even as a child. The thought of putting a grade on an art piece that I had put my heart and soul into just didn’t feel right and is a big part of how I teach today. I don't feel like it is my job to critique, it’s my job to inspire and teach.
My Teaching Career
A huge part of this incredible career is being able to teach and connect with so many amazing people. If you asked me what I did for a living, I would probably say I was more of a teacher than an artist. Before there was EmJ Watercolour Studio, I was an Early Childhood Educator! I spent about 12 years working in childcare and the Toronto District School Board teaching our youngest minds and I loved it! One of my favourite things to teach them was art! I loved to build up their confidence and skills and watch them grow as they made such incredible progress! With so much experience teaching the “ultimate beginners”, I feel like that has been the greatest gift I’ve been able to bring to teaching watercolour. Aren’t we all the ultimate beginners if we haven’t painted before? Being able to introduce my love of watercolour to those who have never experienced the medium is one of my favourite things to do! I really hope my love for teaching you shows through my videos and content ❤️
Watercolour & Mental Health
While art has always been a part of my life, it wasn't until May of 2016 that I truly discovered my love for watercolour. At the time I was going through some internal struggles experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety in a way I had never felt before. There were moments where I could barely bring myself to leave the house (outside of going to work). My friendships had suffered and I had moments of complete hopelessness. It was one day that I decided to walk to my local Michael's (which I had never been to before) to just force myself to get out. Once I was there, I remembered how much I loved browsing the isles of art stores and being surrounded by creativity. That day I picked up the cheapest watercolour palette and paper and came home and started to play. I fell in love! I started to explore the watercolour side of instagram scrolling accounts and becoming completely inspired by what others were doing! It quickly became an obsession to where I found myself dreaming of watercolour and counting down the hours until I could come home from work to start painting again. I attended my first Watercolour Workshop with Artist Stephanie Fehrenbach and fell even more in love. I continued to paint daily for the next few years and in 2018 I had my first son Noah.
Motherhood had rocked me to my core. Postpartum Depression became evident as I tried to navigate this new life of being in constant need, yet so isolated. I then again turned to watercolour. While my son napped, I painted. Soon after that I decided to start sharing what I had learned about painting with watercolour on a platform called YouTube.
I do credit art for saving my life. It has given so much peace and purpose. One thing that I am so grateful for is that I see how much it also helps so many other people. I feel so lucky to have had so many of you reach out to me and share your stories of how watercolour gave you life again. How it helped so many of us through the toughest times in our lives. While I love the physical act of painting and creating, it is my love for teaching and spreading joy that truly makes me love what I do.
May 15th, 2016
My first watercolour palette. best $7.99 I ever spent!
The first watercolour workshop I attended! Where my love for watercolour florals began!
The first thing I started to paint when I began were these background watercolour washes. I would then paint positive messages overtop in hopes that it would make me better.
