Aurora | Emma O'Connell

Emma O’Connell is an Australian contemporary landscape artist based on the Central Coast of NSW.

As a contemporary abstract landscape artist, Emma’s work is defined by a unique colour palette, featuring rich earthy tones, burnt oranges, ochres, deep reds, and rust. The consistency of these tones has become a signature element in her work, reinforcing Emma’s connection to the land.

Emma’s work explores the vast beauty of the outback through rich earthy tones and dynamic brushwork.

Emma is self-taught, with a background in Visual Communication and Design, which influences her approach to composition, texture and colour.

The colours speak to Emma as if they are a vision—intuitive and ever-evolving rather than representing a fixed place.

Through time, inspiration has come from connection, feeling and family. The stories of travel, photos of moments frozen in time and an ode of reverence to Emma’s past and current relatives.

Emma begins with intuitive gestures and free-flowing brushstrokes, allowing the landscape to reveal itself through the process of layering. Using various brush techniques to create depth and transparency, movement is created, adding life to her pieces.

“Aurora was created through an intuitive, layered process using acrylic paint and oil pastel sticks. I built up the work with sweeping brushstrokes, detailed mark-making, and rich textures to reflect the natural energy and rhythm of the landscape. The oil pastels added vibrancy and movement, capturing the pulse of the land.”

“I let the painting evolve organically, guided more by feeling than by plan, reworking it until it felt alive—just like the landscape that inspired it.”

Emma O’Connell, 2025.

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Shipping to anywhere in Australia is jut $30 for this work. International shipping is available on request.