Cherry Taylor to be Featured at 2016 People’s Gallery Exhibition at Austin City Hall

AUSTIN, TX – Local artist Cherry Taylor will be featured at the 2016 People’s Gallery exhibition, an annual, year-long visual art exhibition at Austin City Hall. The People’s Gallery is a program of the City of Austin Economic Development Department/Cultural Arts Division. Now in its 12th year, the People’s Gallery is designed to showcase regional artistic endeavors and to encourage public dialog, understanding, and enjoyment of visual art. An Opening Reception on Friday, February 26, 2016, 6 to 9 pm, will kick off the 2016 exhibition.

Cherry’s artwork was selected for the exhibition from a pool of over 1200 entries submitted by more than 300 Austin-area artists. Her work was recommended by a jury of local art professionals. The exhibition features works on loan from over 100 artists and organizations displayed on the first three floors of City Hall.

Cherry left state employ in 2011 to pursue a lifelong dream of studying art and music. She currently takes classes at Austin Community College and is a volunteer painting teacher for the Lifetime Learning Institute which encourages people over fifty to continue learning. She had a juried show at the Old Bakery and Emporium Gallery in November, 2015 and has been selected as a finalist for this year’s Hunting Art Prize. Although she experiments with many different media, working with fabric and thread is her favorite way of expression. She is also a singer, songwriter, musician and martial artist.

The name of her website, cherrysquared.com reflects a mathematical term. “It means that I can be an artist, a musician or anything else for that matter including a mathematician or a scientist. There are no forbidden subjects. And I can take it all and mix it up into something totally new and exciting and fun.”

Cherry Taylor will have the following work in the People’s Gallery exhibition:

Title: It’s Complicated
Fabric and Thread
28” x 45”

“This is the story of that delicate balance between what we need, which the planet supplies, and what we want, which we extract from the planet at a cost. How much are comfort and entertainment worth when the water is no good for drinking or the air is no good for breathing? How much can we expect others to care for the planet if we ourselves do not? It’s a question, it’s complicated.”

The public is invited to meet the artists and view artworks at a free Opening Reception:

The People’s Gallery 2016 Opening Reception
When: Friday, February 26, 6-9 p.m.
Where: Austin City Hall, 301 W. 2nd Street

The event will feature light refreshments and an acoustic guitar performance by Texas Cultural Trust Young Master Thales Smith. The reception is presented with support from Whole Foods Market, Texas Cultural Trust, and the City of Austin Small Business Program. Limited parking is available in the City Hall garage; however, visitors are encouraged to walk, bike, or use public transportation.

Visitors to City Hall can view the People’s Gallery during regular building hours, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday – Friday. Admission is always free. The 2016 exhibition will remain on display through early January 2017.

About the People’s Gallery: The City of Austin is proud to present the People’s Gallery at City Hall. This free, annual exhibition is designed to showcase regional artists and to encourage public dialog, understanding, and enjoyment of visual art. An opening reception kicks-off the new exhibit each year in February and the exhibit remains on display for one year. For more information, visit www.tinyurl.com/peoples-gallery.

About the City of Austin Cultural Arts Division: The Cultural Arts Division of the Economic Development Department provides leadership and management for the City’s cultural arts programs and for the development of arts and cultural industries. The Cultural Arts Division is responsible for the Cultural Arts Funding Programs, Art in Public Places Program, community-based arts development, and programs to assist the development of film and creative industries in Austin. For more information, visit