--- title: Emmette Lewis description: Contemporary Portrait Painter url: "https://www.artsume.com/a/emmettelewis" type: artist createdAt: 2026-03-31 updatedAt: 2026-06-02 disciplines: - Painting - Textiles - Collage - Conceptual Art - Mixed Media location: "Toronto, ON, Canada" birthYear: 1997 --- # Emmette Lewis *Contemporary Portrait Painter | Painting, Textiles, Collage, Conceptual Art, Mixed Media | Based in Toronto, ON, Canada* ## Artist Statement Primarily, Emmette's creative focus regards subjects that obscure reality and question representation by composing diverse visual narratives. Through oils, textiles and mixed media, she creates abstract reflections that seek to deconstruct societal norms and archetypes, offering a deeper exploration of how our environments, histories, and collective experiences influence identity. Her work exhibits this through distorted portraiture and anomalous figures with an ambiguous lens of stylized and structural beauty. Within the juxtaposing form of imagery, the subject of her work asks the audience to question the relationship between the apparent and the hidden; to consider what exists beyond what is seen. Emmette’s paintings are reflective of personal intimacies, relationships, and diasporic identity. ## Biography Emmette is a South African and Canadian multidisciplinary artist, now based in Toronto, Ontario. Growing up in British Columbia, her work took inspiration from B.C’s diverse environmental ecology and harmonized that with traditional stylistic practices of South African art. Emmette studied at Emily Carr University before moving to Toronto and completing her Honors BFA at York University circa 2023. In 2026 she completed her MFA at OCAD in their Interdisciplinary Arts, Media and Design Program. ## Curriculum Vitae ### Education - **2024** - Interdisciplinary Masters in Art's, Media and Design, OCAD University, Toronto - **2023** - Bachelors of Fine Arts Honors, York University, Toronto, (Honors) - **2016** - Mentorship, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Vancouver ### Solo Exhibitions - **2026** - "Between Two Soils," Ada Slaight Gallery Toronto - **2023** - "Textile Rabbits," Show Gallery Toronto - **2021** - "Anatomy Interrupted," Gallery 1313 Toronto - **2020** - "Holistic Beauty," Gallery 1313 Toronto ### Group Exhibitions - **2026** - "Featured Work: Teach Me," Artsume - **2026** - "Artist Project Toronto," Exhibition Place Toronto - **2025** - "Fifth Annual Juried Show," Art Gallery of Mississauga Mississauga - **2025** - "Eco Arts Expressions," Withrow Common Gallery Toronto - **2025** - "Discomfort," Graduate Gallery, OCAD Toronto - **2025** - "Unity in Diversity," Museum of Dufferin Mulmur - **2025** - "Toronto Outdoor Art Fair," Nathan Phillips Centre Toronto - **2025** - "Artist Project Toronto," Better Living Centre Toronto - **2025** - 2 Bloor St, Toronto Toronto - **2025** - "In The Making," OCAD Toronto - **2025** - 2 Bloor St, Toronto Toronto - **2025** - "At Risk," Salamader - Boynton House North York - **2024** - "The 1000 Year Problem," Grad Gallery, OCAD Toronto - **2024** - "Tell me a Story," The Cotton Factory Hamilton - **2024** - "Fine Art Show," Elaine Fleck Gallery Toronto - **2024** - "FEmeeting; woman in art, science & technology," University of Windsor Windsor - **2024** - "Unity in Diversity," Museum of Dufferin Mulmur - **2024** - "Forms, Faces & Spaces," Alton Mills Art Centre Alton - **2024** - "New Vista Juried Show," Etobicoke Civic Art Gallery Etobicoke - **2023** - "Fine Lines," Monat Gallery Madrid - **2023** - "Fine Art Exhibit," Elaine Fleck Gallery Toronto - **2023** - "Monat Gallery Group Show," Monat Gallery Madrid - **2023** - "Luxembourg Art Fair 2023," Luxexpo The Box Luxembourg - **2023** - "This is Carnival," Toronto Night Market Toronto ### Residencies - **2024** - At Risk - Salamander Residency, North York - **2023** - Gladstone House Artist Residency, Toronto ### Bibliography - **2026** - "Featured Artist," *Artsume* - **2026** - "Featured Artist Interview," *Artsume Community* - **2023** - "Elaine Fleck Gallery - Fine Art Show September 2023," *Elaine Fleck Gallery* - **2023** - "Boynes Artist Interview," *Boynes Artist Award* - **2022** - "Anatomy Interrupted," *BlogTO* - **2021** - "Anatomy Interrupted Feature," *Now Magazine* - **2020** - "Holistic Beauty Feature," *Now Magazine* - **2020** - "Holistic Beauty," *Gallery 1313* ### Publications - **2025** - "(Dis)comfort Zones," *OCAD University, Mixbooks* ### Lectures & Presentations - **2025** - "From Our Point of View: Encounters with Artists," OCAD University Toronto - **2024** - "Sustainability Practicum," OCAD Toronto - **2024** - "In With The New," Gladstone House Toronto - **2024** - "FEMeeting; woman in art, science & technology," University of Windsor Windsor ### Commissions - **2024** - Browns Shoe Company Toronto ### Professional Service - **2025 - Present** - Arts Council Member, City of Mississauga, Arts Council, Mississauga ## Portfolio ### Teach Me (2026) *Oil on canvas* *16" x 16"* A woman lays on the ground of an obscured red background. Floral leaves wrap around her arms and body as a book covers her face. --- ### Unmapped Lineage Ed 5 (2026) *Oil, maps, postcards and textiles on canvas* *5" x 5"* --- ### Unmapped lineage Ed 2 (2026) *Oil, stamps, maps, and textiles on canvas* *5" x 5"* --- ### Unmapped Lineage Ed 1 (2026) *Oil, spray paint, archival postcards and banknotes on canvas* *5" x 5"* This abstract piece used a combination of materials to make up an obscured personal document. The combination of these everyday objects such as banknotes, postcards and stamps recall the ways we communicate with the ones we love. --- ### Happy Birthday (2026) *Oil on canvas* *12" x 24"* A group of people sit closely around a table, sharing drinks and conversation. The composition is tight and intimate creating a sense of connection and ease. Floral patterned silhouettes filter through the narrative. --- ### Between Borders (2026) *Oil on Canvas* *12" x 24"* An introspective portrait captures a figure caught between thought and sensation, their hand resting in their hair. Warm, layered tones of ochre and red dissolve the boundary between body and environment. --- ### familie liefde (2026) *Oil on canvas* *12" x 24"* This work interprets absence and belonging. The rendering of the hand is detailed and warm, holding the child close. These floral leaves are partially embedded into the figure, as if memory and environment are merging rather than sitting separately. --- ### At Rest (2026) *Oil on Canvas* *12" x 24"* Hands gently resting, representing a moment of familial peace and serenity. --- ### My Lief Vir Meisie (2026) *Oil on Canvas* *48" x 60"* An intimate moment unfolds as a woman cuts a child’s hair. The scene is wrapped in bold abstract colors, warm yellows, deep reds, and floral tones. The act itself feels both ordinary and deeply tender, transforming a simple gesture of care into a portrait of closeness. --- ### My Mother as a Gallery (2026) *Oil and ink jet print on canvas* *48" x 72"* A solitary figure sits in a warm interior, facing a wall of memories. Framed photographs, a tennis racket, and scattered objects create an archive of personal history, while a larger image ahead reflects a moment of joy and connection. The glowing orange palette softens the scene, blurring past and present into a space where memory feels both distant and intimately held. --- ### The Distance Decides (2026) *Oil on Canvas* *12" x 24"* Painting of myself and my cousins with my ouma and oupa. Obscured figured are cradled in their arms, demonstrating how family is held together at a distance. --- ### Portions (2026) *Oil on Canvas* *48" x 72"* The scene glows with warm, saturated light, where layered washes and botanical forms dissolve parts of the body into the surrounding space. Everyday objects such as a bottle, a candle, and a table setting all anchor the image together. --- ### Fauna (2025) *Oil on wood canvas* *40" x 40"* --- ### Izobello and Seun (2025) *Oil and wood on canvas* *48" x 65"* A cow floats in an obscured landscape. The animals gaze is neither confrontational nor judgemental, instead it greets the audience with calmness and acceptance. --- ### In The Leaves (2024) *Oil on wood canvas* *40" x 40"* ## Links - **other:** https://emmettelewis.partial.gallery/ - **instagram:** https://www.instagram.com/emmettelewis_art/?hl=en