Viewing the lovely work of Carthage artist, Cher Jiang, was the perfect first for today. I had showings and other activities scheduled and stopping by the Post Memorial Art Reference Library for the June exhibit was an easy and delightful first. I had seen a teaser about Cher’s work. Some of her art pieces replace the people in photos or stills with animals. The sample I had seen was from a scene in the movie, Titanic, and it was charming. I looked forward to seeing more of Cher’s art.
I was enchanted immediately. Cher Jiang creates whimsical, magical art. I enjoyed looking at each piece on display, and then started again and took my time studying the prints and original works. Cher does much more than create fun portraits of people as animals. Her work has a fairy tale quality to it. Her website is very appropriately called, Cher’s Fairyland.
Born and raised in China, the bio on Cher’s website says that she grew up as an only child in a small village. She spent her days in her parents’ garden, looking at the trees, flowers and vines and wondering if there was a fairy who secretly created those. She began to draw. Her desire is simple. Cher says, “I want to help people to find the true beauty about their lives and I have a simple wish. The moment when people see my pictures, their worries, and sadness will fly away and they can start looking at the positive side of the life!”
Cher completed her art degree from the Institute of Fine Art in China. For nine years she illustrated children’s books and taught art and cartoon animation at the university level in China. She came to the US in 2007, moving to Missouri and accepting an opportunity to work with Sam Butcher at Precious Moments in Carthage. She has been published in more than 20 books and has created more than 1000 works of art for magazines, individuals and computer games.
One of the amazing services that Cher offers is to take a life story and turn it into a fairy tale. Using a photograph, she creates a magical picture, featuring the person or persons in the photo. Information can be found on her website. I’ve provided a link at the end of this post. What a great gift or cherished memento these one of a kind creations would be.
Once again, I appreciate that the Post Memorial Art Reference Library displays the work of talented local artists each month. This has been an unexpected benefit of doing firsts this year. I have loved getting acquainted with these artists through the exhibits. Today, I smiled and felt joy as I viewed Cher’s art work. Her wish certainly was true for me…I was uplifted.
Pictures are photos of Cher’s artwork displayed at the exhibit. To view her work and see prints available for sale, go to:
http://www.chersfairyland.com/