Emma Clarke

Questionnaire: Emma Clarke

Describe yourself in a single sentence.
– I make things.

What is the first thing you usually think about when you wake up?
– Opening up the doors to let the light in, secondly matcha.

What was your last thought before falling asleep last night?
– The sun is setting earlier and those long summer nights need to be enjoyed.

What would you never do in bed?
– I really like the thinking of Donald Judd. He put beds all around his properties because they were all places to work, even if that included a nap. ‘The beds help to focus your mind on what you are thinking about.’ So I guess I would do everything in bed!

What are you working on right now?
– I’m working on a constant theme in my practice of how furniture can choreograph encounters between bodies, materials and space. This is being channeled into a show here in London in November with Ontrep Gallery.

Describe your bedroom, what objects do you surround yourself with?
– I like to keep my bedroom minimal, FOR ALL THAT THINKING! So I have books and a ceramic bedside table and nothing else.

What do you do when nobody looks?
– I dance a lot, in between working, making food. One task, dance, halfway through another action… dance.

Favourite dessert
– Millefoglie preferably from Giacomo Bistro but eaten in the Giacomo Tabac bar, Milan.

What do you dream about?
– I very rarely remember my dreams, so I’ll go to a reoccurring dream of me being on a very high playground bar that is 20 stories high where I’m performing somersaults, I guess that comes from being a gymnast when I was younger.

Who do you look up to?
– My grandad, he worked hard for his family and was the most gentle giant, always caring for people and those sneaky hilltop cigarettes I’ll always treasure!

To what extent do you trust people?
– I’m a very trusting person with an open heart.

What is your favourite book and why?
– One book is impossible. Current obsessions: Donald Locke - Resistant Forms, Paul B Precaido - Dysphoria Mundi, eagerly awaiting the new book by Calla Henkel - Four Terrible Parents. Ok, a few more: Françoise Vergès - Another Sun and Han Kang - Vegetarian.

What do you think about sports?
– Great timing with the World Cup finishing yesterday! I think sports can really bring people together, communities, nations. Athletes possess massive global platforms, making them highly effective advocates for social and political change.

Name your favourite restaurant
– Casa Emma, I love cooking for friends. Not because my food is exceptional but the company and house being filled with talking and laughter is beautiful.

What is your most twisted fantasy?
– If you could twist your body so much you could end up in a parallel universe, twist the other way and you’re back in reality.

Photography by Jodie Kharas, London, United Kingdom, July 2026⁠.