Artist Emma Overman was born in Sete Lagoas, Brazil, and raised in Union City, Tennessee. She majored in art at Hanover College and completed a Post Baccalaureate program at Maryland Institute College of Art. While taking a children’s writers and illustrators workshop in New York City, she met a mother/daughter writing duo who had just founded their own small company. Emma’s first children’s picture book was released when she was 25, with a second following six months later. Her second book, “Chumpkin,” was featured during the 2003 White House Christmas Tour because it was one of the first lady’s favorites. Emma’s illustrations earned the first place popular vote in their categories in both the 2005 and 2006 Altpick Awards, an international competition for illustrators, designers, photographers, etc.  Locally, Emma’s work has been featured in three Fringe Festivals, and she is a past Art vs. Art champion. She has maintained a studio at the Harrison Center for the Arts since August 2006, where she has focused primarily on her own fine art projects. These days, the majority of her time is spent raising her 4-year-old daughter, Annabel, who is her muse.