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Emi Avora is a Greek born, UK trained (Oxford University and Royal Academy Schools) and Greece/Singapore based artist. She has exhibited world wide with solo projects including the National Theatre of Greece Athens, South Square Arts Centre, UK, The Apartment Gallery, Athens, Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, New York and Gallery Truebenbach, Cologne. She has participated in a number of group shows including Studio Voltaire, London, The National Museum of Contemporary Art, Athens, The Whitechapel Gallery, London and the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art, Thessaloniki. Her work can be found in private as well as public collections in Europe, Asia and the USA, including The Wonderful Fund collection, Marsh collection, Central Bank of Greece collection. She has also been an Elizabeth Greenshields recipient and her work has been in various publications including ArtMaze Magazine, Create Magazine, Artist Friend, the New York Times and Defining the Contemporary, The Whitechapel in Association with Sotheby’s. She is one of the 2020 Delphian gallery open call group exhibition winners and she exhibited in Singapore at Nouri/Appetite, Singapore (solo) as well as JW projects and Art Seasons gallery (solo) Singapore. Recent group shows were at a66 gallery, Mallorca, Yudian Gallery, Hangzhou, Beep painting Biennial, Wales, Cohle Gallery, Paris, JWprojects, Singapore. She recently won the Overseas Women in Art Prize and will be having a solo exhibition in London in May.
Published on March 2nd, 2026. Artist responses collected in months previous.
Was pursuing your creative work a calling for you? How do you define calling within your practice? Share a concise definition and a moment when this felt most true.
My father is also an artist- we always had art materials around and a studio at home. For me dabbling in art was part of growing up, I didn't have to think about it too much. It was part of my surroundings. However I had to test this calling at times to see whether it was really mine. I did try to move away from art making some periods of my life but I always came cack to it. During my studies I did take other office jobs to see if a 'normal' career path would be better. However I just couldn't understand how people could live without making. I did at some point realise, after a few of those trials, that this is something I will be doing forever regardless of whether it was paying the bills or not. Art is something that you almost have to do regardless of circumstances, its inescapable and sometimes overwhelming.
What does a successful career in the arts look like to you today? Describe how you measure success now and note any shifts from earlier in your career.
It is hard to measure what real 'success' is since the art world and art market translates everything into monetary value. Although they are many parameters, for me longevity is I think the most important. Continuing to work with enthusiasm and boldness is success. I have learned that there will be ups and downs during an art career- one year might go really well while another is harder- however if I continue working and evolving then I still succeed. It is also easy to get bitter in this art journey- although I follow artists and the art market, I try not to compare myself constantly with other artists and try to go my own pace.
How are you kind to yourself in your art practice? (Include one or two concrete examples such as boundaries, rest, or studio routines.)
Continuing from the previous question I choose to take a positive attitude and remain optimistic. In order to do that I need to also be kind to myself. My well being and my family have to take priority over the work. An artist is not only doing the making but also a million of other things to support his/her career. That on top of other obligations and often onsetting anxiety, can lead to burn out. I personally try to keep the anxiety down by doing some exercise and making sure I connect with nature-even if its just a walk in the park. Having kids also gives me an automatic routine as I have to work around their needs- although I complain about it I think at times it is healthy as it forces me to remove myself from the studio and focus on something else before getting back into it.
What impact do you hope your work has on others? Name the response you hope to spark and who you most want to reach.
I would hope my work brings a slither of hope and light to the people that see it. I endeavour to create a space where the viewer can enter, follow a visual journey and be allowed to dream in. Although the work is inspired by a combination of things that often relate to my life, I create a parallel universe, where rules can be defied and questioned. A sense of wonder is probably what I most would like to direct though my images.
Do you have any rituals or spiritual practices that you integrate into your daily life as an artist? If relevant, mention frequency, timing, or how the practice supports your work.
I have been asked this quite a lot recently and I actually I have some habits but I don't have a very particular ritual as such. As I said in the previous answer, I do moderate exercise like yoga to keep anxiety at bay. I love going to the studio as early in the morning as possible- I drink my coffee there and tend to always listen to something in the studio: audiobooks that can often be a big source of inspiration, a podcast or also the current affairs news- in English, Greek and German to practice my languages and get different perspectives.
Was pursuing your creative work a calling for you? How do you define calling within your practice? Share a concise definition and a moment when this felt most true.
My father is also an artist- we always had art materials around and a studio at home. For me dabbling in art was part of growing up, I didn't have to think about it too much. It was part of my surroundings. However I had to test this calling at times to see whether it was really mine. I did try to move away from art making some periods of my life but I always came cack to it. During my studies I did take other office jobs to see if a 'normal' career path would be better. However I just couldn't understand how people could live without making. I did at some point realise, after a few of those trials, that this is something I will be doing forever regardless of whether it was paying the bills or not. Art is something that you almost have to do regardless of circumstances, its inescapable and sometimes overwhelming.
What does a successful career in the arts look like to you today? Describe how you measure success now and note any shifts from earlier in your career.
It is hard to measure what real 'success' is since the art world and art market translates everything into monetary value. Although they are many parameters, for me longevity is I think the most important. Continuing to work with enthusiasm and boldness is success. I have learned that there will be ups and downs during an art career- one year might go really well while another is harder- however if I continue working and evolving then I still succeed. It is also easy to get bitter in this art journey- although I follow artists and the art market, I try not to compare myself constantly with other artists and try to go my own pace.
How are you kind to yourself in your art practice? (Include one or two concrete examples such as boundaries, rest, or studio routines.)
Continuing from the previous question I choose to take a positive attitude and remain optimistic. In order to do that I need to also be kind to myself. My well being and my family have to take priority over the work. An artist is not only doing the making but also a million of other things to support his/her career. That on top of other obligations and often onsetting anxiety, can lead to burn out. I personally try to keep the anxiety down by doing some exercise and making sure I connect with nature-even if its just a walk in the park. Having kids also gives me an automatic routine as I have to work around their needs- although I complain about it I think at times it is healthy as it forces me to remove myself from the studio and focus on something else before getting back into it.
What impact do you hope your work has on others? Name the response you hope to spark and who you most want to reach.
I would hope my work brings a slither of hope and light to the people that see it. I endeavour to create a space where the viewer can enter, follow a visual journey and be allowed to dream in. Although the work is inspired by a combination of things that often relate to my life, I create a parallel universe, where rules can be defied and questioned. A sense of wonder is probably what I most would like to direct though my images.
Do you have any rituals or spiritual practices that you integrate into your daily life as an artist? If relevant, mention frequency, timing, or how the practice supports your work.
I have been asked this quite a lot recently and I actually I have some habits but I don't have a very particular ritual as such. As I said in the previous answer, I do moderate exercise like yoga to keep anxiety at bay. I love going to the studio as early in the morning as possible- I drink my coffee there and tend to always listen to something in the studio: audiobooks that can often be a big source of inspiration, a podcast or also the current affairs news- in English, Greek and German to practice my languages and get different perspectives.
Find Emi Avora on Instagram
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