NORTHAMPTON — Northampton High School graduate Emma Yount has loved painting animals since she was little, but it was just this year that she turned her affinity for pet portraiture into a business venture.
Yount initiated ERY Portraits as a project for a business course she took during her first year at Wheaton College. Previously, she had painted 20 pet portraits for her track and cross country teammates that caught the eyes of students and faculty. By the end of the semester, she had sold almost 100 pieces.
Before she started studying studio art at Wheaton last September, Yount was in the honors art program at Northampton High. She will return to Wheaton as a sophomore in August, but for now plans to extend her talents to her hometown community.
Yount paints each 4-by-6-inch portrait on synthetic Yupo paper, her introduction to which she credits NHS art department chairwoman Lisa Leary. For the pets themselves, she uses pen and watercolor. For the background of each portrait, she uses acrylic.
Portraits are $50 each. Customers can pay an extra $5 to have theirs framed. Yount plans to donate $5 of each purchase to the Northampton Education Foundation. More information and a link to order online can be found at www.eryportraits.com. Email the artist at eyount99@gmail.com.