Meet the artist (continued) . . .

Sheryl set her art aside to pursue her career in public accounting and raise her two daughters with her husband Michael, but never completely put her creative side on the back burner.  She continued her creativity through volunteering at her daughters’ schools and as a Girl Scout Leader.  In the late 1990s her creativity led her to scrap-booking, which she still enjoys today.

 

In early 2009, it was a diagnosis with breast cancer that proved to be the life-changing event that caused Sheryl to seriously consider her life, career and whether to continue down the road she was on. After a satisfying and successful 30-year career as a certified public accountant, Sheryl decided to pursue the creative lifestyle she dreamed about. In 2015, she founded Sheryl L Brake Fine Art.  And so, her journey back to her art began.  

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“Something inside me told me that it was time pursue my art and to follow my heart and passion. My journey to this place was long. I frequently battled my left-brained, logical self which paralyzed me with fear, self-doubt and striving for perfection.  It took much soul-searching, inspiration, some coaching and a little push to venture into this new territory. In the end, it was about trusting myself and allowing myself to pursue my dream.”

 

Since then, Sheryl has been pursuing her art career, various mediums and subjects, and enjoying an art-filled life. Although watercolor is her medium of choice, she also enjoys portraiture and life-drawing in graphite after some courses at the Schissler Academy of Fine Art peaked her interest.  A life-long learner, Sheryl is a certificate student at the Schissler Academy where she continues to hone her skills and explore additional mediums, such as charcoal, pastel, graphite and oils.  Sheryl’s genres include still life, landscapes, flora and fauna, wildlife, and people with a style that is colorful and realistic. Her work is influenced by masters such as John Singer Sargent as well as many modern-day water-colorists and graphite artists.

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Sheryl’s art has been featured at the Alzheimer’s Foundation Memories in the Making fundraising event (Fort Collins, Colorado), various student displays at the Schissler Academy of Fine Art (Loveland, Colorado), Inktober (Loveland, Colorado) and the 65 Roses for Cystic Fibrosis Show at the Independence Gallery (Loveland, Colorado).

 

Sheryl is an avid outdoorswoman and enjoys gardening, skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, fly-fishing, small game hunting, cycling and golf.  Sheryl lives in Windsor, Colorado with her husband of over 35 years, Michael, and their German Short hair Pointer, Annie. She has two beautiful daughters and a wonderful son-in-law.