Emma Tindale is a self taught, figurative artist based in Sydney, Australia. She is interested in depicting the human form through pose and movement. Her paintings examine the spectrum of human emotion and natural movement that we all recognise and execute. She paints subjects that offer a notion of familiarity, allowing viewers to recognise common and simple features, expressions or gestures.
Can you tell us how you became practicing as an artist?
I’ve always done this, as a hobby/ passion. As far back as I can remember it’s been the thing I’ve loved most, but I studied media in uni because I thought that a corporate role would be a safer option and no one around me was pursuing anything creative. I ended up working as a marketing manager for an arts consultancy, and spent my days marketing and admiring Australian artists. It was hard writing about their creations all day when I just wanted to explore that part of myself, so I quit that job in 2022 and decided to go all in to pursue what I’d always wanted to do. After about a year of trying to define my artistic style, I created a body of work for my first art fair and it’s all grown from there.
Can you talk us through your creative process? How do you usually go about creating your work? And how does the subject appear in your paintings?
I’m intrigued by vintage and editorial photography, and the colour compositions of interior design. I usually source images from old magazines, paintings and photos and decide on the posture of my subject first, then work on everything else from there. I sketch out their body and then decide the facial features that I think best match the slouch/ stance of the person I’ve drawn. After I’m happy with the composition, it’s the fun part of painting and getting messy (making a million mistakes until I’m happy with the final piece).
Why are you drawn to painting as a medium?
I think it’s because of the mess. I used to love drawing but there’s no room for error, and I make so many. I like that paint can be so bold and colourful but that you can really see the human touch and brush in the mess of it.
How did you develop your personal style and how has it changed over time?
I always knew I liked portrait/figurative painting the most, but it was really hard to figure out my own style and how to capture the images that I envisioned. Ultimately I just paired things that I love; interior design, androgynous fashion, confident poses and rich, moody colours and ended up creating works that felt right to me.
What do you hope people feel or take away when experiencing your work?
I hope that people feel confident, possibly sexy. I paint people that look self assured, confidently taking up their space on the canvas with faces that say ‘this is exactly who I should be’. I hope people feel similar about themselves when they look at my work.
