Born and raised until the age of 6 in Cuba, Emely spent much of her early life exploring and relishing the outdoors. Vacations at her grandparents’ beach house, and days and nights exploring the tropical foliage and fauna around home imbued her mind with colorful memories. As a pre-schooler she developed an interest in art, painting bright images of the outdoors.
The rest of her developmental years were spent in the Washington DC area.
Winning first prize in the school science fair in 7th grade was a defining event for her, adding a love of science. Emely also enjoyed gardening, puttering in her parents’ yard. Eventually two of her three favorites, science and plants, were combined in college, earning a Master of Science in Horticulture and Landscape Design. Art took a backseat for over two decades.
Her pursuit in science honed her powers of observation, also a curiosity in the why and how of things, which today extends to her art practice. Learning, and experimentation with new techniques results in her art ever-evolving with time.
She returned to art, working with watercolors in 1996 when she moved to Tucson and was raising her two sons. In 2012 with children grown and newly retired she began to paint full time. Since then she has migrated from watercolor to soft pastel to oil and cold wax as her medium.
She is self-taught taking many workshops with professional artists including oil and cold wax masters Rebecca Crowell and Jerry Mc Laughlin, and others.
Current Residence: Tucson, AZ
Education: MS 1984 Horticulture, University of Minnesota, BS University of Maryland
Born: Matanzas, Cuba
Art Instruction: Mostly self-taught, although college included various classes in design principles and drafting. Workshops with : Ovannes Berberian, Richard McKinley, Kim Franchier Lordier, Shelby Keefe, Dawn Emerson, Doug Dawson, Lorenzo Chavez, Anne Templeton, Albert Handell, Stephanie Birdsall, Susan Ogilvie, Stephen Quiller, Diane Maxey, Frank Francese, Skip Lawrence.
Influences: Van Gogh, Diebenkorn, De Kooning, Joan Mitchell, Georgia O'Keefe, William Wendt, Edgar Payne, Franz Bischoff
Societies: Juried member Pastel Society of America, Sonoran Plein Air Painters Society,
Tucson Pastel Society,