MUNTHE ART MONDAY:
EMMA HOLT

Please introduce yourself and tell us about what you do.

I’m Emma, an illustrator living in London. I’ve been drawing for years now but have only recently taken the leap to do it full time, which is both so exciting and a bit of a dream - and to be honest quite scary too. I have no idea exactly where it’s going to take me, but I believe God is leading the way, so I’m trying to enjoy the ride and see where it goes.

I’ve always loved drawing architecture, which is where my little drawings first began. I started regularly illustrating in a small sketchbook that I take with me everywhere, originally as a way of developing and refining my style and has grown into a long standing habit. It’s taken a lot of time and patience, but I finally feel like I’m getting somewhere with it.

More recently, I’ve been branching out into more colourful illustrations and larger oil pastel pieces, while also getting to work with a variety of brands and taking on more commissions. I have some very exciting trips coming up too, so I’m really looking forward to seeing where the next few months take me and what opportunities may come along. We’ll see!

Can you name some other female (artist) that inspires you and explain why they do so?

Goodness me, there are so many. Too many to list every single one but some that pop to my mind: Catriona Woods, Manocki, Adelynn Rose, Jazmine Joye, Jobey Hon, Alistrations to name a few. They’re all incredibly talented and have such different styles, which I find so inspiring. I love seeing everyone’s individuality and the different ways people approach their work. It always sparks a little creative itch in me and makes me want to see what I might be able to create.

There’s also a lovely group of women I met through TikTok, and we now have art critique sessions every month or two where we share our work and give each other feedback. It’s really fun to see how everyone is growing and developing their own work. I always leave those calls feeling really inspired and excited to see where art might take me.

Emma is wearing our BOHDI DENIM PANTS and LIXIA BAG.

What would you like people to notice in your artwork?

I think the main thing I’d love people to notice is the detail. I do a lot of pen work, and some of the shading can take hours of drawing fine, individual lines - especially on the larger pieces. So if you’re ever looking at a drawing, please zoom into details. It’s quite a slow process, but I think that’s what I enjoy about it. You have to really look at whatever you’re drawing and notice all the little things you might normally overlook. That idea of slowing down and paying attention is always where my illustrations stem from. It’s like therapy.

I recently launched a course and my hope is that people to do the same through their own sketchbooks. To take a little more notice of the places they go and the ordinary things around them.

For me, there’s something really peaceful about putting on some music - something like Abbie Gamboa radio if I'm feeling particularly reflective - sitting down with a sketchbook and taking my time over a drawing. I’d love for other people to discover that too. Not necessarily to become artists, but just to have a reason to slow down and look at things a little differently.

Could you explain more about how being a woman has affected your career?

To be honest I haven’t thought much about my gender in relation to my work. I haven’t yet experienced a time where I’ve obviously felt that being a woman has had a negative impact on my career, apart from the odd comment here and there. Perhaps that’s partly because so much of my experience in illustration has been surrounded by other artists and friends who genuinely want to see each other thrive. That sense of community has been such a beautiful part of my career, and probably something that’s quite easy to take for granted. One of my favourite things is seeing other creatives share their work, celebrate each other and go on to do really cool things. It’s a lovely reminder that there is enough space for everyone.

I find the community around my work incredibly supportive, and I’m so grateful for that. As anyone who shares their work will know, it can feel very vulnerable to put something out into the world without knowing how it will be received, or whether it will connect with anyone at all. Having a network of people who are there to encourage you, share your work and offer a few kind words is actually quite empowering. I think that, more than anything, has shaped my experience as a woman in the creative industry so far - feeling encouraged to take up space, while also wanting to make sure there’s space for other women and creatives to do the same.

Emma is wearing our TEZZA T-SHIRT from The Simple Studio.

What has been the most challenging aspect of being a woman in the arts?

Comparison. I’m not sure that’s necessarily a female-only trait, but I think the flip side of seeing all these amazing women thrive is having that little thought that I’m not doing nearly as well as any of them, and maybe I should just stop. But as I said before, I truly believe there’s enough space for everyone, and seeing how different everyone’s work is from one another really proves that. It can be so easy to see someone else’s success as your failure, but over the years I’ve tried to flip that mindset and instead choose to be excited for that other person.It can be particularly tricky with social media, especially when you’re in a creative slump. Even seeing the way other creators post, or how much they post compared to you, can leave you thinking, ‘Am I posting too much? Am I not doing enough? Is this piece of content good enough?’Thank goodness for the time limit on social media, or I would have lost a lot of hours to spiralling without even realising. I think it’s important to remember that everyone is running their own race, and someone else doing well doesn’t take anything away from what you’re doing.