How Cher Pruys Helps Us Slow Down and See the Beauty All Around Us
In this interview for the Our Women in Arts Network, we sit down with award-winning hyperrealist painter Cher Pruys. Cher opens up about her creative journey, the challenges and joys of being a self-taught artist, and what drives her to capture life’s quiet, everyday moments with such stunning detail. She shares how patience, passion, and persistence have shaped her work, and reminds us that beauty often lies in the most ordinary things. Through her story, we learn not only about her creative process but also about the power of following your instincts and staying true to your unique voice.
Cher Pruys was born in Regina. Over the years, she lived in many places, including Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, and Fort Frances, before settling into her present home in Devlin, on the banks of the Rainy River, with her husband, Mark, and pets. By age three, Cher was seldom found without a drawing tool in hand. She worked in pencil, charcoal and ink over the years, until she picked up a paintbrush at the age of 35. Beginning with oil paints, she found her chosen mediums in acrylic, watercolour and gouache. Although self-taught, her dedication and talent have led to her work being juried into 736 International exhibits. She has garnered 1126 awards thus far. She was the first recipient of a significant Canadian National Award, The Mary Pratt Crystal Award of Excellence at the 2014 SCA Open Juried Exhibition, The SCA 1st place award of distinction twice, respectively, in 2016 and 2017 at Canada’s 150 show.
The SCA 2nd place Award of Distinction in the 2021 Elected Members Show. The winner of the Biafarin/SCA Award of Excellence at the 2022 Elected Members Show. October 2021 Winner of The Exclusive Harmony of The Arts Contest by The Blue Blood Gallery in Prague. The Gold Medal recipient for Figurative Painting in The Mondial Art Academia’s International 2018 Competition. The Silver Medal for Portrait Painting in the 2020 International Art Professional World Art Academy Competition. The Aviation Week & Space Technology Award Best of the Best, and the ASAA Award of Distinction for the best painting in the ASAA International Space & Technology Exhibit & Competition, consecutively for 2 years. In 2020, 2021, and 2023, she was awarded the most wins in the American Art International Awards. The Grand Prize Winner in The AWA (American Women Artists) 2022 Spring Online Show with a perfect score for “In Retrospect”. 2nd place in the AAPL elected Members online show 2022, Award of Distinction in the 2023 Pushing Forward Reaching Back Show, and a 3rd place in the NOAPS Spring Online Artist Members Show. In 2023, she won the Gold Medal of Honour at the Allied Artists of America’s 110th show. She has had 22 solo exhibits. Cher is also an avid fused glass artist and a certified teacher of piano and guitar. Her painting, “The Bubble,” had the honour of being part of the Masterworks from the International Guild of Realism Tour.
Her work has graced the covers of 3 books, 43 magazines, including The Best Of Acrylic Fall 2021, cover of May Arabella Magazine with “In Retrospect”, the cover of #20 Hyperrealism Magazine with “Girls Girls Girls”, #21 Hyperrealism Magazine with “The Young Cowboy”, March Artists & Illustrators Art magazine, the cover of the July Artistonish Magazine, Observica Elite 2024, and the most recent Art Close Up Magazine #26, January 2025. It has been featured in over 600 international publications. Cher’s works have found a permanent home in private and public collections worldwide.
1. How did you get started in your art career?
As a child, I was rarely found without a pencil or crayon in my hand. I was always fascinated by the world around me. I spent countless hours lying on my back in the fields behind our family home, gazing at the clouds and imagining them as magical kingdoms for the many subjects I envisioned within them. My dad got me my first camera when I was four, and his patience was terrific as he paid for developing rolls of rather unidentifiable images that I had shot on my daily walks around the block. Introduced to the arts early through ballet classes and being trained as a classical pianist where I learnt to evoke emotion in my audience by sound in a composition created by beats, notes and tones it opened me up to the desire and expectation to provide the same results in my art, only by sight, using a rhythm of lines and shapes. Both disciplines share elements including texture, balance, contrast and harmony, thus it shaped my destiny to pursue my art career.
I always say I was born with a pencil in my hand, and I have been drawing ever since I can remember.
Cher Pruys
2. What media and techniques do you primarily work with?
My artistic evolution has progressed in tandem with my choice of medium and style. From the beginning of my creative journey, when I used a crayon, then a pencil, and later charcoal, pen, and ink to convey and express my inner thoughts and turmoil on paper, a burning desire to incorporate more substance into my work was born. I graduated to oil paints, dabbling in abstract art, which did present a freedom of flow that I enjoyed. However, chronic migraines worsened by the emissions from oil paint, and the recurring call for realistic renderings helped my gravitation toward water-based mediums. Water-based medium is my calling card! Acrylics provide me with that shiny finish so desirable when painting reflections, water, metal and glass as well as an ability of application, thick and textured on canvas, rock or board, or thin in layers on my favourite choice 300LB Hot Press a surface that boasts capacity for the finest details.
Watercolour I find is great for building skin tones with its beautiful transparency, and gouache being so opaque and creamy provides a matte finish. Thus, I often combine the three media when working on a particular piece that requires several different effects. The joy I felt as I manipulated the water colors on my chosen surface and then the incredible control of the acrylics which lent itself fully to the finest details I desired were magic…I was hooked. My realism to photo realism to hyperrealism had begun. I found realism didn’t quite satisfy my desired results, so I ventured into photo realism, which was gratifying in detail but bland to me as it simply became an accurate reproduction of the image from which it was rendered. Hyperrealism, which required such meticulous detail that it became unrecognisable in the original subject matter, thus still an illusion, satisfied my craving. Thus, the perception creates a depiction that the viewer finds so convincing of reality that it becomes real in their eyes, and is this not true in both art and life?
3. Where do you find inspiration for your artwork?
Every day, moments capture my attention. Moments that trigger memories or evoke a strong emotional response in me quickly become my next obsession. By observing these often fleeting moments, I notice that my views on life, especially in terms of time and how little of it we as individuals each have, and also how one’s perspective overall can be narrow, I use them to spur growth in myself with a desire to enhance the human experience. Subjects that are considered mundane by some quickly become most fascinating to me….what joy it is to find the extraordinary in the ordinary….
4. Do you have any parting words of wisdom for our readers or aspiring artists?
Being a self-taught artist has certainly had its challenges! I have been very self-disciplined, driven, and determined, with strong time management and problem-solving skills. I spent countless hours sketching from life and studying anatomy, which came easily to me as I had spent several years as a bodybuilder and exercise instructor. I also delved into books on composition, colour theory, perspective, value, tone, light, and shadows. Understanding these subjects is essential to creating a successful piece of art.
The advantage of being self-taught rather than having had a formal education in art for me I feel has been that I feel free to follow my passion and am not constricted by the many rules that one has imposed on them in a structured program. Rules are made to be broken, and one needs to step out of one’s comfort zone to grow. I am open to constructive criticism and always look for opportunities to learn and improve. For any aspiring self-taught artists, if you follow these guidelines, I am confident that you will find success.
I paint because I love it. It brings me joy, peace, and a sense of accomplishment.
Cher Pruys
5. What do you hope people take away from experiencing your art?
I want my artistic message, although silent, still to be a robust conversation between my audience and me. My subject matter thus becomes an important choice, picked to convey the message I wish to express. In my paintings of children, I aim to represent the innocence, purity, and beauty that children possess, as well as how ordinary activities, such as those found in many family albums, can be like magnets… Ballet lessons seen in “Entranced”, the joy of catching those cold wet snowflakes on ones tongue, the connection between a toddler and a family dog, the joy and feeling of accomplishment the first time one opens their eyes underwater, and the desire for the wonderful coloured balls in a bubble gum machine are some examples.
Then there is the joy to be found in the most mundane of subjects…the shiny red delicious looking apples encased in plastic, the simplicity of a daily staple for most of us in a loaf of bread, the shine, texture and form of stripped crushed soup cans ready for recycling, and finally speaking of shine, the majestic and impressive flying machines I saw on the tarmac at an air show. I strive to give eternal life to the fleeting moments I choose to portray in my work. I wish to help my audience find the true meaning of life in the small, simple, everyday things we all experience. Positivity, in general, is an intense and moving attitude that we can all benefit from as we navigate the days of our lives. Kindness, understanding, and sometimes just simple fun, provided by way of a brush, are my way of uplifting someone’s day. Portraying the expression on the woman from the Congo’s face in “In Retrospect” was both a joy and a cause for some serious thought of my past and my future.
Through this interview with Cher Pruys, we’re reminded that great art doesn’t always come from formal training—it often comes from passion, dedication, and a deep love for what you do. Cher shows us the power of trusting your voice and finding beauty in the everyday. For the women in our creative community, her story is both comforting and motivating—it tells us that it’s never too late to start, to grow, or to share your art with the world. Her journey inspires us to continue creating, remain curious, and believe in the quiet power of persistence. To learn more about Cher Pruys, visit the links below.
