Each of Emma Hercus’s canvases open her world of washy colour and whimsy a little further. Reflective of her rural upbringing, with its many characters and rich whenua, she never strays far from the coast.
Known for her kind naïve faces, surrounded by native foliage and animals, Hercus lays many blankets of pigment. Rich colours that she then scratches back and recalls back to the layers beneath - where has this world been? In what light has it been cast once before? Central to each is the Plimmerton-based artist’s love of people - their stories, energy and shared moments. Often with vague memories of togetherness and Aotearoa’s landscape composed in scenes of folkloric warmth in the background.
EXHIBITIONS
The Foragers, Solo Show, 27 February – 21 March 2026
Seedlings, Group Show, 25 October – 15 November 2025
Together, Solo Show, 12 July – 2 August 2025
Summer Exhibition, 23 December 2024 – 19 January 2025
Intertwined Narratives, Group Show, 23 November – 13 December 2024
Kindred, Solo Show, 7 – 23 June 2024
AWARDS
Pataka Art Awards, winner of the Open Award 2024
Finalist in Craigs Aspiring Art prize 2024
NZ National Contemporary Art Award 2022 – Supreme winner
Finalist in Molly Morpeth Canady Awards 2023
Finalist in NZ Painting and Printmaking Awards 2021
Finalist in Craigs Aspiring Art prize 2021
Pataka Art Awards August 2019 - winner of The Creativity and Promise Award
INTERVIEW
PRESS
The Post | Painter Emma Hercus takes over her home with naive-style figurative work
The New Zealand Herald | National Contemporary Art Award
Friends of Pātaka | 2024 Open Award winner Emma Hercus
Creative Matters Podcast | Emma Hercus - Figurative painter
The New Zealand Herald | How to become an artist
ARTWORKS
INSTALLATION VIEWS
Emma Hercus
Oil and acrylic on wood panel
Framed in ash
825 x 1230 mm
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