Riding the Wave

Emma Ortiz’s Mustard, Mt. Fuji, Cherry Blossom, Harajuku, Riding the Wave, and So Quiet in the Garden capture fleeting moments of wonder from her time in Japan. These works reimagine the shifting landscapes seen from the window of a Shinkansen train, the bare trees she instinctively adorned in her mind, and the hushed beauty of hidden gardens and quiet neighborhoods. Through her signature vocabulary of color and mark-making, Ortiz translates memory into movement—gestural strokes echo the rhythm of passing scenery, while delicate layers of pigment hold the serenity of stillness. Each piece is an ode to observation, transformation, and the joy of seeing the world anew. Emma Ortiz’s HEARTFELT series is a luminous meditation on memory, love, and transformation. Comprising twelve original oil paintings, the collection unfolds like a personal archive—an outpouring of nurtured creativity shaped by the artist’s recent milestones. Painted in the wake of a honeymoon in Japan, a wedding surrounde