American · Contemporary figurative painting · Expressionism
Isabel Emrich
b. 1993, California
Isabel Emrich (born 1993) is a California painter known for expressive oil paintings of women underwater and floating in the sea, seen from below the surface, such as Speak Up (2018).
1 work in the collection
Works by Isabel Emrich
Isabel Emrich is an American painter, born in California in 1993, whose oil paintings of women submerged in water have been widely shared online. Her work sits between figuration and abstraction: bodies and faces are recognizable, but the water around them breaks into thick, gestural strokes of color. Speak Up (2018) represents her in our catalogue.
Life in brief
Emrich grew up in Southern California. She has described learning to paint outdoors from her grandmother on the cliffs above the Pacific, and the advice to "paint only what you see." In 2013 she moved to San Francisco to study at the Academy of Art University, where she received a BFA in painting and drawing. Her underwater series drew attention through design and art websites around 2018, and she has exhibited with galleries including Skidmore Contemporary Art in Los Angeles.
Style
Emrich paints in thick oil, often with a loaded brush or knife, so the surface of the canvas has its own waves. Many of her pictures are seen from below the surface, where light fractures into bands and a figure's face distorts. She has said the series explores peacefulness and calm combined with the energy of moving water. Her handling owes something to French Impressionism, filtered through California light.
Speak Up
In Speak Up a woman is fully underwater, her face rippled and broken by the light from above, and a ring of air escapes from her lips. The title turns the image into a statement: the effort to speak where speech is impossible. It is both a portrait of a swimmer and a picture about voice and silence.
Water and women in art
Emrich's swimmers belong to a long line of women in water in painting, from Ophelia to bathers, though her figures are active and at ease rather than tragic. Compare Millais's Ophelia and the nymphs of Herbert James Draper for older, very different treatments.
Where to see her work
Her paintings are sold through galleries and online platforms, and she shares new work on her website and Instagram.
Questions & answers
Who is Isabel Emrich?
Isabel Emrich is a California painter born in 1993 who studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She is known for expressive oil paintings of women swimming and floating underwater, often seen from below the surface.
What does Isabel Emrich's Speak Up show?
Speak Up (2018) shows a woman fully underwater, her face distorted by rippling light, with a ring of air escaping from her mouth. The title links the image to the struggle to be heard, alongside the sensation of being submerged.
What style does Isabel Emrich paint in?
She paints in an expressive style that straddles figuration and abstraction, using thick oil paint and visible strokes. Faces and bodies remain recognizable while the water around them breaks into gestural color, with an Impressionist interest in light.