Looking back on past work I notice that regardless of the ideas I consciously attempted to explore (the rewards and limitations of domesticity, nostalgia for childhood, the thirst for sustained intimacy, etc.) my paintings remains largely preoccupied with my personal life–with my relationships, hang-ups, family and friends.  Recently, I've been making paintings that depict futures I imagine for myself–both futures I fantasize about and ones that I fear.  That said, my most basic desire is to make paintings that fight for something like grace amidst the pressures of desolation, disengagement, and selfishness.

born:1987, Ithaca, NY

education:

Williams College, BA with Highest Honors, 2010

selected awards/honors

Artist-in-Residence, Henry Luce III Center for the Arts, 2012
Hubbard Hutchinson Fellowship, Williams College, 2010
Steamboat Scholar, Steamboat Foundation, 2009
Frederick M. Peyser Prize in Painting, Williams College, 2008

selected solo or two-person exhibits

Dadian Gallery: "Paul Kehrer and Emma Steinkraus: New Work," Washington, D.C., 2011
Wilde Gallery: "Emma Steinkraus and Jamie Sweeney," Williamstown, MA, 2008

selected group shows

Target Gallery: "Nest," Arlington, VA, 2011
Williams College Museum of Art: "This Goes on the Refrigerator," Williamstown, MA, 2010
Lichtenstein Center for the Arts: "Berkshire Arts Association Fellowship Show," Pittsfield, MA, 2010
Decker Gallery: "Juried Undergraduate Exhibition," Baltimore, MD, 2009