Alison Cherry is a Toronto based artist who specializes in figurative painting. Born and raised in London, ON, she studied studio art and art history at H.B. Beal’s BealArt vocational school before going on to achieve a BDes Bachelors Degree in Illustration from the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto, ON.

She has since been pursuing her painting and illustration practice, experimenting with classical techniques while drawing on her design experience. Created primarily using oil paint and pastels, her work is an amalgamation of the more formal and direct qualities used in traditional portraiture and the bold, sexualized themes often found in contemporary fashion photography. The fusion of these styles allows her work to convey a feeling that is both classic and modern, dark and beautiful, while her use of underlying narratives add depth and a more progressive approach to each piece.

Cherry’s most recent work focuses on personal themes of passion, desire and strength. These paintings are dynamic studies of the beauty and the frivolity of physical ornamentation, which serve as a contrast to her more intimate and powerful depictions of the nude figure. Much of her work is autobiographical, and many of her pieces are set within the context of her studio and were painted using live models.