Testimonial

"Never in a million years did I think I was someone who would commission a painting! Seemed a terribly posh thing to do, not to mention a terrifying prospect not to have seen the actual painting before I bought it (spot the control freak!). But having taken the leap of faith in Emma’s experience and astonishing eye for colour, shape and texture, it is unbelievable how so TOTALLY RIGHT her painting, Free Flow, is for my space. Off the shelf, I would have been searching a lifetime for a work that so beautifully echoed the colours in my room, mirrored the size of the furniture, and gave such a knock-you-off-your-feet wow factor. I now know that ‘to commission’ simply means ‘to bring a special room together perfectly’, and hand on heart, is an investment thoroughly worth making for a space that’s important to you. The zest for life, exuberance and beauty that Emma poured into my painting is palpable. I utterly adore it and now would recommend the commission process to anyone who wants to make a special space even more special. I wish I could invite you who are reading this to come over and see it in the flesh, as the photos can never do its texture and depth of colour justice.
I’ve followed and loved Emma’s joyful, impressionistic, vibrant work for several years, always keeping half an eye for ‘the one’ to come along. I saw a snap of one of her paintings, Monet’s Dreams, on Facebook and instantly felt drawn to it. It was no trouble at all to her to bring it round to my house just ‘to see’ if it could work on the lovely big, blank wall above a rich green velvet sofa in my home office.
Beautiful as this other painting was, it looked totally lost on my wall. That’s when the idea of the commission kicked in. Emma was full of energy and suggestions without ever being pushy. On the contrary, she was incredibly respectful of my thought process and really ‘got’ that it was quite a big deal for me to commit to. She came to my house several times; ever patient, ever jolly, ever wise. She carefully measured the space, listened carefully to my ideas, and advised without ever dominating. There’s something about her depth and breadth of experience and healthy level of self-confidence that she’ll be able to produce just the right thing that is incredibly reassuring.
Things that really helped me – looking at other paintings of Emma’s and picking out bits from various different ones that I liked (she somehow managed to blend elements of all my favourites together in the end); giving her swatches of some of the fabrics/paints in my room (I was afraid it would end up a bit matchy-matchy / “tried too hard” but she made it subtle, blended and perfect); having her reassurance that, if needed, she would keep going with painting and re-painting until it was just as I wanted (I never needed that in the end, but it was good to know she would do that within the agreed fee if necessary). Right up to the point of paying the deposit I knew that if it didn’t feel right to push ahead, it would have been OK to pull out, with no hard feelings. I think it’s a process to become sure that a commission is the right thing to enter into, and Emma holds the process lightly, exploratively, respectfully and always with lots of fun.
I went to see it when it was nearly finished at her studio. It’s quite odd seeing something you’ve already bought for the very first time! We discussed a few small changes, a week or so flashed by, and Emma was on my doorstep to hang it in situ. She’d even chosen a wonderful name for it.
Seeing it in my room was simply wonderful. I get a little frisson of happiness every time I look at it. Yes, I could have hung three, four, five smaller photos in that space and it would have been cheaper. But my finished painting is on a totally different planet in terms of the impact it has in what is otherwise quite a simply and neutrally furnished room. Most of all, it gives me JOY, and I am grateful and glad I will have a little piece of delicious Emma Rose with me for the rest of my life!"

Rebecca Hourston, Bath, 26 March 2019