Meet Portland Artist, Cheryl Anderson from Rustic Stoned Art

“Grandmother and Granddaughter” by Cheryl Anderson of Rustic Stoned Art

I grew up in Oregon and am the mother of three amazing adult children and four beautiful grandchildren who call me G-Ma. There are many other little ones that also call me G-Ma, because I believe that a child can never have too many grandparents. I am a special education assistant and sometimes do administrative work at the local schools. I love working with the little ones. I am also on the board of directors at our local live theatre, a place I call my second home.

I consider myself an accidental artist. I got started by gluing rocks in the shape of flowers onto an old piece of wood. I made them to put in my backyard garden for a whimsical touch. The next thing I knew friends were asking me to make them something. So I started collecting old pallets to cut up for wood. I hand sanded and treated the wood pieces with either paint or polyurethane. I mostly created flowers and dragonflies in the beginning.

I soon found that my art made people smile, and that is exactly what keeps me wanting to create more. Over the past few years I have honed my skills, and my art has become much more detailed depicting people, animals, sea life, and much more. I use natural and recycled materials as much as possible. I get ideas from everywhere! Sometimes friends suggest things, other times I see a scene and then try to recreate it. Every piece of art is unique and one-of-a-kind.

Many people ask me where I get the materials I use. About 12 years ago our family had taken a trip to Montana and we went to the Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine. We had purchased several bags of dirt that we had to clean to find the sapphires in it. Well, it all sat in the garage for several years until I decided that maybe I could find sapphires to use in my art. After cleaning it all I did find a couple dozen sapphires, which aren’t worth much raw, but I also discovered hundreds of rock and agate pieces that could be used as arms, legs, shoes, shirts, skirts, dresses and so much more. 
I also make trips to the Oregon Coast to search for the perfect pebbles, agates, seashells, etc. It’s a great excuse to go to the beach. The grandkids know to always be looking for things I can use in my art. I have also been lucky enough to have some lovely seashells given to me by some generous friends. The wood I use is reclaimed wood from different places. Sometimes I use old pallets, old fence boards,or whatever I can find.

I have created over 200 unique pieces of art and sold over 100 of them to friends, online, and by participating in holiday bazaars. I have even created a piece of Covid Art. Some of my most popular pieces have been The Reading Room and The Hairdresser, which folks like to give as a gift to their favorite beautician. I have done several versions of each of these, but they are all unique one-of-a-kind pieces of rustic art.

​I want my art to make people smile, and I feel I have succeeded. I hope it puts a smile on your face too.  

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“The Hairdresser” by Cheryl Anderson, Rustic Stoned Art