Why Some Paintings Stay With You Forever | Gallery Director Emma Wilson

Some of the art we live with becomes inseparable from the lives we’ve lived. A painting can recall a graduation, a marriage, a place we love—or someone who is no longer here.

For Emma Wilson, director of Portland Art Gallery, those connections are at the heart of what art can offer. In this conversation, she reflects on moving through her own divorce, the recent death of her mother, and the unexpected ways creativity can make room for both grief and hope. She shares stories of collectors whose paintings became part of family histories, and of artists whose work continues to connect people even after they are gone.

Emma also offers a glimpse into the intuitive work of curating a gallery, where seemingly different pieces can begin to “talk” to one another—and where relationships matter as much as aesthetics.

Join Dr. Lisa Belisle for this conversation with Emma Wilson today on Radio Maine.