We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Emma Rose Rowell (Emmursss). We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Emma Rose below.
Emma Rose, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
I’ve always had a very strong personal drive pushing me towards my goals. Sagittarius is the sign of the archer, (often said that we’re on an ‘eternal quest’ for knowledge, experience, or whatever that may be) and my unrelenting ambition is something I love about myself. Almost in spite of my drive it would seem, my personal insecurities (mostly rooted in trying to control how others perceive me)– always seemed to be on the opposite end, holding me back from seeing things through– whether that be my art or any other creative endeavor I wished to pursue. The more I allowed myself to let that need for control of others’ perceptions and expectations of me go, whether it be in regards to my physical appearance, my work creatively, my knowledge in the spaces I work in– the more I started to see true growth and movement towards my goals. I am constantly reminding myself to not allow the frivolity of self consciousness stop me from pursuing my creative passions, it’s simply not worth my time. Creative freedom through shamelessness!
Beyond the more philosophical side of this response, a slightly more tangible way that I have always sourced confidence is through music. Listening to Britney Spears’ Blackout album on repeat has done wonders for my self esteem (could be because she’s also a Sagittarius… but who am I to say?). Music is something that very much influences my feelings about myself, my emotions, how I perceive the world around me, and my confidence. Listening to music has the ability to imbue a level of confidence within me that I don’t get from many other avenues. It gives me the freedom to explore different aspects of myself, leaning into characteristics of my personality based on what I’m listening to, different sonic choices informing my creative processes when I go to make things of my own– it’s unlike anything else. Britney’s music in particular gives me a certain sense of inner power, like it does for so many others. If you see me with my headphones on working away at some visual art piece, just know you have a good chance at guessing who I’m listening to!
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I’m a multidisciplinary visual artist who works with different mediums to fuse the digital and physical worlds. I play with fashion, pop culture, and film/TV, blending these references with themes of girlhood, friendship, sexuality, empowerment, and social identity. I am interested in self exploration through artistic mediums, as well as how art can serve as a personal archive of your desires, style, and experiences. What excites me is discovering myself through creating– regardless of what that looks like. My more recent explorations have been a dive back into my early love of poetry, a new love of zine creation, different art styles with my digital pieces, physical art like keychains and art prints made with my designs, with much more to come.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
This feels like a continuation of the conversation started by my earlier response on how I’ve built my confidence– because ambition, self-assuredness, and shamelessness are what have gotten me to where I am. I’m still working on completely eliminating my people-pleasing tendencies (aren’t we all) and letting my unabashed demeanor that I’ve pushed deep within myself to come to the forefront– but so far letting those three qualities lead me and trusting myself in order to put less pressure on the details and outcome, has brought me this far in my artistic career. I’m a big advocate for being mindful of how critical an eye you give your own work. There has to be a point at which you step back and give yourself permission to just make the art, and the allowance to explore your creativity more fluidly.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
I’ve released the need to constantly produce new art collections lately, and have shifted my focus to expanding my creative horizons. I have concepts for mini films that I’d love to creative direct– short, visually interesting clips that can further bring my world-building to life. I’ve been having fun putting less pressure on coherent series, and instead letting myself make solo pieces or digital designs that exist outside of any similar creation. I’ve put more energy into my love for fashion and sustainability, creating different designs around pieces in my closet that I’ve sourced from thrifts or purchased from vintage sellers. I am enjoying putting myself both in front of and behind a camera more often, and as I mentioned, working on elevating my writing abilities as I get back into poetry, and researching the political and cultural history of zines. I’ve really just been taking my time and enjoying this period of creative exploration, taking advantage of the knowledge we have available to us to learn about nearly anything we’d like to pursue. Continuing to push myself out of my comfort zone as I work in each of these spaces is a focal goal of mine as I move into this next phase of my creative journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: Emmursssworld.com
- Instagram: @emmursss / @emmursssworld
- Twitter: @emmursss / @emmursssworld
- Other: TikTok: @itgirlemmursss / @emmursssworld
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