Biography & Press

Photo: © Konu

Florence Blanchard adopted the moniker ‘Ema’ in the early 90′s when she began spray-painting the walls of her hometown Montpellier (Fr), inspired by the worldwide graffiti phenomenon and its instantaneous appeal. It wasn’t long before her works adorned buildings and trains in the South of France, Barcelona, Paris and throughout Europe, before moving across North America.

As a resident of New York for almost a decade, her work as a visual artist can be seen throughout the city – both independently and alongside the creative elite. From wheat-pastes in Brooklyn, to gallery shows in Chelsea and large-scale mural productions in Manhattan, Queens and the Bronx – Ema’s artwork transcends the parameters of her humble beginnings and incorporates visual elements inspired from her daily life and the Brooklynite artist community she belongs to.

Utilizing acrylic, watercolor, silkscreen and spray-paint on canvas – Ema creates a world of abstract scenes populated by illustrative figures in a dream-like state. Now based in Paris, she continues to explore themes of symbolism, genealogy, and science fiction.

Oh, and she also has a PhD so that’s Dr. Ema to you.

New York 2010. © Mary Woods.

- EMA “Hot Cocoa on Kerala Backwater” by Jaclyn Atkinson August, 08, 2010 New York

Hot cocoa clouds dripping, whimsy flowers blowing, marshmallow skin, golden drops of milk, a playful calico cat, all on a rainy afternoon of a backdrop canvas. “Hot Cocoa on Kerala Backwater’ by EMA makes me feel the warm and fuzzies like nothing else in the collection. I personally feel like it belongs in a place of equal grandeur and desire, a place of quiet luxury that exudes that relaxed feeling of a slow paced cozy coffee shop. This painting invites the viewer to breathe slow, dream big, deeply relax into that cup of cocoa, let the tension of the world escape you if only for a moment.

Selected press:

- Boum Bang (fr), Dec 2012.

- Gorgo (It), Nov 2012.

- Paulette Magazine (fr), Apr 2012.

- Revue XXI (fr) no16, Oct 2011.

- Digital Arts magazine (UK), Oct 2011.

-  La Nouvelle République (fr), Oct 2011.

- Breuckelen solo show covered by Creative Boom,  and Design Week. UK Sept 2011, Brooklyn Street Art (US) Sept 2011.

- Trisickle (UK), Sept 07 2011.

- Libération (fr), Aug 17 2011.

-  Juxtapoz (US), Aug 5 2011.

-  Le Vif Focus (Be), July 25 2011.

- Article Magazine (UK), July 13 2011.

- ‘The Star (UK), July 11 2011.

-  l’Humanité (fr), Mai 2011.

- Artistikrezo.com (fr), 5 Avril 2011.

-Rumbum (US), Dec 07 2010.

- Interview on Shape What’s to Come network by Hope Kitterman. Nov 20, 2010 San Francisco.

-Catching Up With Street Artist, EMA by Kate Singleton. Arthound, Oct 22, 2010 New York.

- The villager (NY), Apr 2005.