Emily Sunez
About the Artist
Emily Suñez is an artist, author, and illustrator who grew up in northern Virginia and now resides and works from her home studio in Pasadena, California. She paints southwest desert landscapes and plants with oils and watercolor. Emily’s award-winning paintings have been featured in Candyfloss Magazine, as well at Brea Gallery, TAG Gallery, Palos Verdes Art Center, and the Joshua Tree National Park Art Exposition. Outside of her art practice, Emily is an advocate for people with chronic illness and founded a local support group for people with dysautonomia. She is the illustrator and author of her forthcoming book The Healing Journal: Guided Prompts and Inspiration for Life with Illness. She holds a BA from the College of William & Mary and an MA from New York University.
Artist Statement
My creative process is a form of meditation and healing. Painting intricately detailed oil paintings has helped me forge an intimate connection and appreciation of the natural world. While my process begins with taking photos in Mojave and Sonoran Deserts, I work largely from memory of these locations in my most recent work. My paintings pay homage to moments when I felt a spiritual connection to the landscape and its many life forms. To me, nature and spirituality are one. These tranquil moments in the desert I recreate are my sanctuary.
I create an idealized and simplified version of desert spaces in my work, portraying nature as pure and sacred, worthy of reverence and protection. The moon phases I’ve incorporated into my paintings symbolize being in sync with the rhythm and cycles of nature. Compositions of simple geometric shapes on a natural wood background serves to be grounding and connected to the Earth. I strive for my paintings to be a reminder to the viewer of Earth’s beauty and sanctity.
What is your “Dreamland” ?
My dreamland is a fantasy of an idealized world where beauty abounds and nature flourishes. A place where human beings respect the environment and embrace the interconnectedness of all living things.
My paintings are a representation of my dreamland – an interpretation of this pure, romanticized version of the natural world. I paint from a combination of memory and imagination to depict a heavenly, dream-like landscape where nature is preserved and revered.
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