Her dreams of becoming an artist were put aside when life got in the way but, after roaming the globe for 14 years in the corporate world, she finally found “home” in Dorset and rediscovered her creative passions.

Forever experimenting, Emma dabbled in acrylics, silk painting and even jewellery making while she was travelling, but believes she has found her niche working with resin to create these striking works of art.

Always inspired by the coastline and the sea, it’s fitting that Emma now works from a summer house at the bottom of her garden in Whitecliff, Poole, a stone’s throw from the water.

And, after 20 years working in sales, she is thrilled to be returning to her first love.

“I went to the Channel Islands for college,” she says. “Mum and dad moved there when I was 15. We had famous artists and famous photographers running it – that was amazing.”

Emma achieved a Bachelors degree in art and design at Portsmouth University, as well as studying in the AKI, a university just outside Amsterdam.

It was during her degree course, that she discovered resin – a product which leaves a pleasingly smooth finish, but is expensive to work with and requires a fairly sterile, dust-free environment. After completing her studies, Emma began working in finance and found that work and family became her priorities, although she did still make time for her creative side.

“I worked in finance and moved counties every couple of years,” she explains. “But before moving into the world of finance I had my own gallery in Yorkshire called Lemon Studios. An idea was born to offer affordable art through franchise before .com and online art galleries was a thing. That was 20 years ago.

“It was going really well, but we had one of those sliding door moments – we got offered this job to move abroad, so we closed down the gallery.”

Emma and her partner moved to Rome, then Houston and Barcelona before relocating to the Middle East.

“We did four places in 12 years,” she remembers. “It was good, but it wasn’t art.”

While she was abroad, Emma kept her hand in with acrylics, silk painting and even some jewellery making, but started selling work properly again when she moved to Dorset.

The last 18 months has been extra special, with the art studio giving amazing opportunities for Emma to paint some really large pieces. Nearly 18 months ago Emma made the leap of faith, and gave up work to commit to her artwork.

She now spends her time creating pieces for exhibitions and galleries – her work is on display both locally and in London – and working with interior designers to create wall art and furniture using resin.

“I do paintings, but I can also provide furniture ideas as well,” she explains. “I work with contemporary spaces – really high end contemporary.

“It’s always been sea-based anyway, which is why I wanted to move down here to be near the sea.”

As well as focusing on her own work, Emma is keen to introduce other artists to resin. Having been invited to be a consultant and workshop host to artist resin company Eli-Chem, she works with art societies and also works with artists in one-to-one workshops too. She will be hosting live Facebook demonstrations and travelling the country providing workshops to artist societies as well as pre-booked sessions in Leeds, London and Dorset.

“It’s still quite an unknown product,” she explains. “You can also cover your paintings with it as a clear coat. It’s quite hard to work with, and I like things that are quite hard to work with. It’s got that pleasing finish.”

Emma also makes and sells artist panel boards, which have been specifically designed for resin artists’ but also work well for any artist wishing for a hard surface to paint on that allows for contemporary look. And she is keen to continue her work supporting other artists.

“Eventually, in the next ten years, I would like to be an agent for other artists, helping them,” she explains. “I’m already giving them advice on how to use the product, I would like to help them with how to market the product. You’ve got to have time to do your marketing and put things online. It’s quite a full time job.”

W: www.emmajonesartstudio.co.uk