Profile: Emily Bowers

Emily Bowers - an Artist in Residence

Make this world a better place if you can.’ This may be a refrain from a Diana Ross single but for Emily Bowers it is her raison d’être. Concerned about the natural world for as long as she can remember, Emily was raised in the countryside in Weston near Spalding. She has fond memories of childhood summers cycling round country roads to visit horses in fields, finding frogs in the dyke with her Dad and taking a ride in her Grandad’s combine harvester.

Having studied art in several forms, from photography to fine art and textiles, Emily has jobbed her way through various roles in both film making and photography locally. It was working with conservation and environmental photographer, Toby Smith, where the link between her love of the natural world and her skills as an artist and photographer came into sharp relief.

Emily regards her surroundings with an artist’s eye, noticing natural compositions that will inspire a drawing or painting where the light creates atmosphere and she captures movement and energy with playful mark making.

Her work is driven by emotive responses and a love of storytelling, whether a fictional exploration or reinterpreting a kernel of knowledge that has piqued her interest. Whilst Emily draws upon her keen observations, her imagination frees her to step out from the world and examine its progress, exploring other perspectives, so that her work hooks us in with its narrative.

Emily’s hands-on experience allowed her to bypass a degree, enrolling at the Anglia Ruskin School of Art in Cambridge to do an MA in Children’s Book illustration to further develop her storytelling skills, completing her course as the pandemic set in. During the enforced isolation of lockdown, the need for connection was identified by local arts organisation, Peterborough Presents, and was one of the services which came to the fore over the last few months.

Emily was engaged to work with residents selected by agencies in the Peterborough area as being particularly vulnerable during the lockdown. As part of the ‘Mint’

project’ they were given a care package which included a creative activity sheet, notebook, a bar of mint chocolate and a mint plant to nurture. Emily then contacted the recipients and, using the recollections, memories, tips and hints inspired by the gift, she illustrated a booklet for the residents that they gifted to friends, family and the wider community, enabling participants to reach out and build connections.

The beneficial link between creativity, nature and mental well-being has never been so significant as now when communities are feeling the impact of the pandemic, and the award winning Deeping Lakes are an ideal inspiration. When Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust highlighted misuse of the nature reserve during lockdown, Art Pop-Up was engaged to put together a project working with local residents to creatively appreciate and understand the beauty of the Lakes with free art workshops, walks and talks. And who better to champion this project than Emily Bowers? Emily is relishing the opportunity to demonstrate the artistic benefits of the Lakes and this precious jewel in the crown of the Deepings while maintaining the sanctity that it offers.

Says Emily, ‘Nature’s beauty is endless and full of shapes, colour palettes, movement and clever designs. I hope to be able to use my work as a platform to help protect the Deeping Lakes and continue educating and raising awareness of the issues we face here through visual storytelling.’

The Scheme has been jointly funded by SKDC, DSJ United Charities, The Deeping Lions, The Rotary Club of Deepings, Deepings Youth Club and The Deepings Library.