Cheryl Derricotte facts for kids
Cheryl Patrice Derricotte is an American artist. She creates amazing artwork mostly using glass and paper. She lives and works in San Francisco, California.
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Her Early Life and Education
Cheryl Derricotte grew up in Washington, D.C.. She went to college and earned several degrees. She studied Urban Affairs at Barnard College, which is part of Columbia University. She also earned a Master's degree in Regional Planning from Cornell University. Later, she got another Master's degree in Fine Arts from the California Institute of Integral Studies, which helped her become the artist she is today.
Her Artwork and What Inspires Her
Cheryl Derricotte says her art is inspired by many things. She thinks about what makes a "home" or what it's like to be without one. She also finds ideas in the beauty of nature, or even from natural disasters. Happy memories and feelings of loss also play a part in her art.
She chooses to work with glass and paper because they are special materials. They look see-through and delicate, but they are actually very strong. They can last a long time, even for thousands of years!
Cheryl creates her art by doing a lot of research. This research helps her explore not just money matters, but also environmental issues. She looks at current events, politics, and city landscapes to find ideas for her art.
Her art has been shown in many places, like galleries and museums. In 2016, she had her first solo show called Ghosts/Ships at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco. This show quietly but powerfully explored the history of the global African slave trade, connecting the past to the present day. In 2019, she was part of an exhibition called “Ancestral Journeys” at the Euphrat Museum of Art. This show focused on who we are, our family stories, and how people move from one place to another.
Awards and Recognition
Cheryl Derricotte has received many awards for her artistic talent. Some of these include a San Francisco Individual Artist Commission and the Rick and Val Beck Scholarship for Glass. She was also recognized as an Emerging Artist at the Museum of the African Diaspora. These awards show how much her work is valued in the art world.
Working for Change Through Art
Cheryl Derricotte is also an "arts activist." This means she uses her art and her voice to support important causes. She is the Secretary for the Three Point Nine Art Collective, a group of Black artists in the San Francisco area.
She is also a leader at Crux, which is a group of Black artists across the U.S. They combine art and technology, like Virtual Reality, to tell powerful stories. Cheryl also takes part in discussions about how race and identity are shown in art and in the world.
