Cherry Virginia
Cherry Virginia is a world-wide traveling artist based in Atlanta. Her artwork has been featured by Artoberfest and by Art on the Atlanta Beltline. In March of 2021, the Atlanta Street Art Map asked Cherry a few questions:
I’ve seen you called Cherry Virginia, Mikhaela Cherry, and Cherry Chandra. What do you prefer to be called and where did all the different names come from?
I got this question multiple times and I’m glad you asked. Mikhaela is actually my confirmed name my full name is Cherry Virginia Chandra. Back in 2012, I thought it would be cool to use my confirmed name with my real one, hence the @mikhaelacherry account. The account got pretty popular at some point and thought it’d be too late for me to change it. So you can call me Cherry, but I usually display my artwork as Mikhaela Cherry.
How do your formative years in Indonesia and traditional Indonesian artwork influence your work today?
Interestingly enough, I actually found my style when I was traveling in London. I took a 4 day course and how to draw basic paintings such as portraits, perspective, animals, etc. By the time I got home to Indonesia, I started experimenting with different pattern that was inspired from Indonesian traditional fabric called “Batik.” I usually call it zentangle but a lot of my Indonesian friends notice it as a “Batik” pattern influence.
When did you know that you wanted to be an artist?
I feel like I’ve always wanted to be an artist since I was 5 years old. I used to paint my kitchen wall with crayons and got scolded pretty bad by my parents. For some reason when it’s time for me to go to college, I thought having a major in business would help me get a better job perspective. So I took fashion marketing and work as a graphic designer for a while. Not long after that I quit my job. If only I could tell my younger self that I’d get paid painting walls now, its be hilarious.
How did you get your start painting murals?
After I quit my job as an in-house graphic designer, I decided to start traveling around the world. When I was backpacking throughout south east asia, I offered one of the hostels I was staying if they want to exchange a mural with free stays. They looked at my artwork on Instagram and said yes! Since then, I start painting for a lot of hostels in exchange for food and free stays. The experience helped me build my portfolio on my website and Instagram. After I came back from my trip, I started to get a lot of clients from Instagram and word of mouth, so I started charging them. So it’s kind of like a bootstrap from what I thought was a hobby.
You have lived and worked all over the world. How did you end up in Atlanta?
After a few years working with the traditional mediums, I feel there’s a lack of my skill in terms of digital. I thought to take small courses here and there, but I decided to might as well get a degree while learning the digital medium. SCAD was my first choice because of its amazing illustration department and that’s how I ended up here.
I understand that you specialize in Zentangle art. Can you say a little bit about Zentangle?
I see Zentangle as a way to keep you feeling “Zen” or calm. Because that’s exactly the feeling I get whenever I started my big zentangle painting. I just have the feeling of ease and relax when I worked on the detailed pattern. It is actually knowns as self-help art therapy practice to enhance relaxation and focus.
Whales are a recurring theme in your work. What special magic do whales hold for you?
When I was a little girl, I used to have a recurring dream where I would be in the darkest ocean swimming with a blue whale next to me. The dream will come to me every few days to the point where I had to tell my mom. Being raised Chinese-Indonesian, my mom told me that our culture believe if you dream about fishes, it means you’re going to receive good luck or fortune. Coincidentally, a few years later when I drew my first mural, which happened to be a whale, it was the first mural that I get paid for. A lot of my clients actually commissioned me to draw whales because of that first mural and it has become my signature voluntarily.
Anything else that you would like the readers to know?
I am currently open to work this summer! and you guys can follow my work at @mikhaelacherry on Instagram 🙂
Link to Cherry Virginia’s website: https://mikhaelacherry.com/
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