Biography
Emily Hopkins lives and works in Hudson River Valley, NY and Mid-Coast, Maine. A graduate of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY, Hopkins is known for her bold, large-scale abstract canvases. Intuitively constructed, colorful and layered, Hopkins’ exuberant compositions draw inspiration from mental and physical observation, illusions found in nature, and the passing of time.
Hopkins has exhibited her work throughout New York and Maine, including group shows at Perry Lawson Fine Art, Garner Arts Center, CMCA, Cynthia Winings Gallery, Carver Hill Gallery and the Leighton Gallery. She has had solo shows at Husson College and The Yellow Shed, Rockland, ME. Hopkins has upcoming solo shows at Yvette Torres Gallery, Bristol, ME and Cynthia Winings Gallery, Blue Hill, ME in 2026.
Artist Statement
I approach my paintings like a visual poem; I emphasize touch, feeling and aliveness through expressive gesture and color. As I paint I explore boundaries between space and object, stillness and movement. These are intuitive responses in the moment to remembered and imagined experiences in nature.
Mark making is central to transmitting a sense of immediacy and feeling in my work. Brushes and scrappers are used to contrast transparency and drip with opaque areas of thick paint. I paint with a full palette of bold saturated dark colors and pastel areas of light to explore edges and spaces that pulse creating visual intensity. I have found with the addition of outside references, landscape, figure and still life, a full spectrum of visual phenomena has energized my approach to abstraction.
Solo Exhibitions:
Cynthia Winings Gallery, Blue Hill, ME. Solo show; Project Room. July 21- August 15, 2026
Hey Sailor Gallery, Searsport, ME. Jan-April 2024
The Yellow Shed, Winter St. Rockland, ME July 2016
Husson College Gallery, Bangor, ME. Feb. 2008.
Van Dam Space, 49 Van Dam St. NY, NY. Feb. 1993.
Group Exhibitions:
Perry Lawson Fine Art, Nyack, NY. Ongoing rotating group show. April- September 2026
Perry Lawson Fine Art, Nyack, NY. Bending The Arc; Juried show. Jan-March 2026
Garner Arts Center, Garnerville, NY, Group show Dec. 2025
Cynthia Winings Gallery, Blue Hill, ME July-Augsust 2025
Garner Arts Center, Garnerville, NY, Group Show Dec. 2024
Cynthia Winings Gallery, Blue Hill, ME “The Unfolding of Things” 3 person show, July-August, 2024
Granite Gallery, “Sharing Space” 2 person show. Tenants Harbor, ME. July 2023
Maine Art Gallery, Generations 65th Anniversary Exhibit, Wiscasset, ME May 2023
River Arts, “Dark & Light”” Damariscotta, ME. March 2023
Granite Gallery, “Rending The Veil” 2 person show. Tenants Harbor, ME. July 2022
Hopkins Gallery, North Haven, ME. July 2021
Carver Hill Gallery, Revolving group show. Rockport, ME. 2007 - 2011.
Waterfall Arts Gallery, Figure: Group Show. Belfast, ME. May-June 2010.
Bangor Public Library, Juried Group Show: Third place in Oil/Acrylic. Bangor, ME. June 2010
The Leighton Gallery, Blue Hill, ME. Summer 2009.
Aarhus Gallery, “Radius” Belfast, ME. March 2009.
Center for Maine Contemporary Art, “First Traces” Rockport, ME. Fall 2008.
Jean B. Chalmers Gallery, “4 Maine Artist” Lincoln Street Center, Rockland, ME. May 2008.
Warren Street Gallery, Hudson, NY. April 1995.
Herron Test-Site Gallery, Brooklyn, NY. July 1992.
Schaffler Gallery, "The Exceptions and The Exceptionals: Women Artists at Pratt." Bkln, NY 1987.
Education:
Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY
BFA 1987, Painting major, Art History minor. RH Burcher Scholarship
Art Students League, NY, NY 1983-1984
School of The Art Institute of Chicago Spring 1983
Simon’s Rock of Bard College 1982-83
Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, RI Summer 1980