Barbara Touati-Evans

Emma Taylor is an oil painter and art history student, engaging with the human condition, sensuality, gender, mortality, and intimacy. Emma managed and curated the March 2024 Women’s History Month exhibition in Farnborough. She is currently shortlisted for the 2026 Royal Female School of Art curatorial mentorship in collaboration with the White Box Gallery in London. Emma’s paintings are characterized by soft, atmospheric textures and a restrained, muted palette that reflects upon 19th century classical traditions. Figures often appear partially obscured, emerging from or receding into hazy backgrounds or exposed underpainting.

With over 20 years of experience in the creative industry, I’ve seen firsthand how fast things change and how easy it is to feel like you’ve been left behind. I’ve worked with design teams, led projects, and coached creatives through career transitions, and I’m passionate about helping others rediscover their confidence and creative flow. After my wife

I am a multi-disciplinary artist, and freelance illustrator and designer specialising in arts education, book arts, stop-frame animation, model making, and graphic design. I am a part-time lecturer on the BA Illustration course at the University of Portsmouth in the School of Architecture, Art and Design. I run my small-press publishing platform, Micro Library Books, exhibiting at illustration fairs in the UK and internationally, and since 2001 I have co-run an arts education partnership, Borbonesa, founded with fellow artists. The arts education projects I work on often focus on wellbeing and community, such as Stories in Transit, which aims to establish the right of displaced individuals to cultural expression.