A Luminous Current

Solo Show at Mercury20 Gallery, Oakland CA, March/April 2025

Drawing inspiration from her practice as a year-round swimmer in the San Francisco Bay, Shepard creates richly layered works that explore states of presence, a search for wholeness and embodied

understanding. Her process involves deconstructing and reassembling painted and drawn elements, choreographing them into compositions that pulse with authentic gestures and vital energy.

"Like submerging into cold water, in making art I surrender to sensation," says Shepard. "I wade into an internal landscape and give form to what's present, whether it's uncomfortable, luminous, or an anxious struggle."

The physicality of Shepard's work exists in a balance with its vulnerability. Marking and painting on paper, joining elements with thread, tacking layers in place, she creates surfaces that speak to impermanence and constant flux. There is an echo to experiences of exposure – whether swimming in harsh conditions or facing abrupt health challenges– transforming moments of uncertainty into

gateways of deep presence.

EMILY SHEPARD

EMILY SHEPARD