Birmingham Open Studios 2025 - Artist Spotlight - Cherie Jerrard
This Birmingham Open Studios, we’re excited to introduce Cherie Jerrard, not only as a visitor, but as an artist we’re proud to have in our creative crew! She’s stepping into her role as a Seventh Circle gallery artist, and this is your first chance to meet her, experience her work first hand, and witness the raw, theatrical energy she brings to the scene.
Cherie’s art is a compelling contradiction, graphic yet tender, chaotic yet deliberate, poised versus raw, costume versus vulnerability. Her work is playful and theatrical, but beneath that surface lies an openness that invites you to lean in, to question, to feel. Her characters are clowns, harlequins, mimes, pierrots… but forget everything you think you know about clowns.
These aren’t here to make you laugh. They’re here to unravel you. Her characters sit right in the uncomfortable space between joy and pain, chaos and control, masks and vulnerability.
"We’re all so fucking vulnerable," she says, "and giving ourselves permission to be shit sometimes is the real work."
Honestly? She’s right. And her clowns force us to confront that, the weird, messy parts of ourselves we hide under Instagram filters and “I’m fine” faces. They’re theatrical, yes, but they’re also mirrors. And sometimes what they reflect back… stings. To her, they’re more than performers, they’re reflections of the self, wrestling with vulnerability, societal masks, and the pressures of curated perfection. For her they represent a battle with ourselves, the masks we wear and the vulnerability underneath.
Inside the Process: Freedom Over Perfection
Cherie’s creative process is like a beautiful, chaotic wrestling match between planning and instinct. She’s recently moved into her own studio for the first time since her Shoreditch fashion design days, and it’s unlocked a new level of creative chaos. Her space — complete with a random built-in phone box (yes, really) has given her the freedom to stop overthinking and start unleashing. "Art is about conveying something more," she reflects. "The tools are just a means to an end. It’s important to let it flow naturally, without gripping too tightly." "I’m so in love with the process," Cherie shares. "It’s my happy place."
Her approach has become less cautious, more instinctive. Her process is a marriage of contrasting approaches. One involves detailed background creation on wooden panels, paste, layers, and intricate finishes inspired by street art. The other responds instinctively to shapes and textures, allowing the artwork to emerge naturally, often surprising her in the process.
You can still feel Cherie’s fashion background in her work, the silhouettes, textures, and attention to detail but now she’s throwing in collage, photography, vintage scraps, and street art grit for good measure.
Cheque stubs drift across panels, torn-up scraps sneak into corners, and every mark she makes carries emotional intent. Rebellion courses through her mark-making. Her process is part performance, part release, an ongoing dialogue between the version of ourselves we show and the one we hide. Honestly? We see ourselves in that tension.
Catch Cherie at our gallery during BOS 2025 on these dates:
Weekend 1: Saturday, September 20th & Sunday, September 21st
Weekend 2: Saturday, September 27th & Sunday, September 28th
What to Expect:
Expect raw work, real talk, and a glimpse into the messy magic of her studio practice. You want to see this up close. Trust us.
Stay tuned, as we lead up to BOS, we’ll introduce more artists, each revealing a little of their process, their chaos, and the deep stories behind their work. Keep an eye on our blog and socials for sneak peeks, demo schedules, and behind-the-scenes magic.
Want to stay in the loop?
Sign up for our mailing list, your direct line to artist features, event news, and exclusive gallery updates.
No spam, just good stuff straight into your inbox.
