For Emma Paige ’20, art has always existed in dialogue, whether that be with history, religion, anthropology, language, or lived experience. That interdisciplinary mindset began at Merrimack College and now carries her across continents, disciplines, and audiences as an internationally exhibiting artist and scholar.
Paige majored in Studio Art from 2017 to 2020, focusing her studies at the intersection of psychology and art history. At the time, the exact major she envisioned did not formally exist, so she worked closely with faculty, including Professor Jonathan Latiano and Associate Dean & Chair Nancy Wynn, to shape an academic path that aligned with her interests. “The design program allowed me the flexibility and freedom to hand-pick my courses that best suited my educational endeavours and goals for after graduation,” Paige says.
During her time at Merrimack, Paige immersed herself in the Visual and Performing Arts community. She served as a department intern, photographing, cataloguing, and beginning the digitization of the university’s art collection. She was also Vice President of the Art Club, curated the exhibition Abstraction: The Art of Seeing at McCoy Gallery in her senior year, and participated in multiple campus exhibitions. Outside of the arts, Paige was deeply involved in student life as Choreographer and Treasurer of the Figure Skating Team, a Women’s Rugby team member, MSBR instructor, and active volunteer.
Her academic experiences extended beyond North Andover. A sociology course with a German language component and study-abroad experience in Berlin—both proved especially formative. “I truly felt challenged and saw tremendous interpersonal growth,” Paige explains. That curiosity has since defined her career.
Now based in the United Kingdom, Paige is an internationally recognized interdisciplinary artist working across film photography, mixed media, painting, and collage. Her practice engages themes of light and dark—negligence, impatience, consequence, solace, catharsis, and resolution—grounded in both technical skill and scholarly inquiry. Her work has been exhibited across Europe, China, the United States, and the UK.
In 2025, Paige received the Bronze Prize in the UK International Art Competition’s Real Illusions exhibition at Gallery NAT London and was selected for The Sussex 2025: “L’art de la vie quotidienne.” She is currently a candidate for the UK’s Global Talent visa as an internationally exhibiting fine artist.
Alongside her studio practice, Paige continues to build an academic foundation that informs her art. After earning her M.A. in Historyof Art and Archaeology of East Asia from SOAS University of London, she returned to university this year to pursue a second master’s degree in Historical Research at Birkbeck, focusing on Russian-speaking Jewish object culture. Her multidisciplinary training allows her to blend artistic production with archival research, art-historical writing, curatorial practice, and public lectures on art and anthropology.
She has worked as an archivist for private art collections, curated exhibitions independently and collaboratively, written biographical and art-historical essays, and taught fine arts and art history to both children and adults. In addition, she is currently collaborating with an art partner based in Russia to curate cross-cultural fine art projects exhibited in the UK. Moreover, Paige is also engaged in community-focused work. Through a UK government grant, she has worked with women survivors of violence, using art and spatial engagement as tools for healing and dialogue. The project reflects her enduring belief that art is not merely aesthetic, but relational and transformative.
Over the past year, Paige has navigated personal health challenges related to a chronic neuro-immunological condition and spinal injuries sustained during her skating career. Despite these obstacles, she continues to advance her academic, artistic, and curatorial work with determination.
She credits Merrimack with instilling that confidence. “Merrimack prepared me to take risks,” she reflects. “It proved to me that not only can I design my own path, but I can walk it with confidence that the skills I attained will act as my protection from the unknowns.” The close-knit community and emphasis on intellectual exploration affirmed her belief that art, history, and religion are not separate inquiries, but interconnected lenses through which to understand the world.
Her advice to current students is grounded in participation and persistence. Paige says, “Participate in your college experience! Read as many books as time allows, be present when face to face, and cherish the value of being wrong over and over to learn more again and again. Failing is a great sign; it means you’re just trying and unafraid to be ambitious. Continue on as a lifelong learner and question everything.”
Today, Paige’s work bends beyond the limitations of visual objects, integrating research, philosophy, memory, and lived experience into layered artistic expressions. From North Andover to London, from McCoy Gallery to international exhibitions, she continues to design a path defined not by convention, but by inquiry—and it all began with the freedom to build her own.
