Artist Statement ‘25
Psychology states that pattern and repetition allow people to feel at ease, evoking a meditative state. My work leans into this idea through organic abstractions that create rhythm in a non-representational way. The act of pouring paint becomes both intentional and unpredictable, allowing me to explore repetition while invoking the natural patterns that flow through water, space, and memory.
As a Chinese, Filipino, and Slovak woman, I’ve often lived between worlds; never fully one thing or the other. That in-between space has shaped how I see and create. Water, for me, is both metaphor and memory. As a lifelong swimmer, I’ve always felt most at peace submerged, where movement and breath dissolve into one. That sense of surrender is something I aim to recreate in my practice.
I am intrigued by how art takes shape. With synesthesia, I experience music and auras as color and pattern, translating sound and energy into intricate visual forms. I seek to connect viewers to something beyond the surface, a memory, a place, or a feeling buried deep within. My work becomes a process of exposing the subconscious, revealing flashes of nostalgia or resonance that can’t always be named.
Paint is my medium, but natural forces define the boundaries. As a performance process artist, I’ve learned to surrender control, allowing gravity, flow, and chance to participate in creation. Each piece is an act of acceptance, of what emerges, what transforms, and even what is lost.
Photo by Tyler Ammons.
About Emily Tan;
Emily Tan is an accomplished abstract painter and live performance artist with over ten years of professional experience. Graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from The University of Tampa, she has also distinguished herself as an art curator, creative director, and social media expert.
Tan’s artistic expertise spans various mediums, including acrylics, house paint, dye, found objects, and digital tools, often integrating music, dance, and yogic movement into her live performance work. Tan’s art, characterized by organic abstractions, employs patterns and repetition to evoke a sense of psychological ease and meditation in viewers.
Tan's passion for art stems from a personal journey of self-expression and identity formation in response to feelings of otherness and inadequacy in her youth. Art has served as Tan’s refuge and a means to reclaim her story and power. Tan has showcased her talents in over 75 live events across Florida, Georgia, and New York, and contributes to the art community by teaching at the Tampa Museum of Art, where she continues to inspire and shape emerging artists.
Emily also DJs, immersed in music's influence, Emily’s work naturally vibrates with melody, harmony, and rhythm frequencies. Tan visualizes music in intricate patterns, her synesthesia transforming sound into shapes and colors. This profound connection led her to explore DJing in 2020, seeking a creative outlet during the shutdown. Tan’s unique perception fuels her innovative DJ sets and electrifying paint performances, where she seamlessly blends art and music, defying conventional boundaries.