Cherie Leung, Transmission, knitted i-cord, aluminum wire (170ft), dimensions variable, 2025.

This piece was made as part of a project with the University of Arts London (UK), City & Guilds London (UK), and OCADU. Five students from each school made works that were shown at the Stackt Market North Hall Gallery in Toronto (April 2025). The works will then be transported and shown at Millbank Tower in London (May 2025).

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Transmission involves connection. Our connections shape us, guide us, inspire us. Separated by 5,709 kilometres, we shared ideas, forming friendships that were joined by positivity and support. So, wherever our meandering paths take us, we know that we are still connected.

Cherie Leung, Are you warm enough?, 5.3ft x 9ft cotton quilt top made of 6,912 1"x1" squares, on top of 42 quilts and air mattress, 48in(h) x 80in(w) x 45in(d), 2025.

As a mother of 3, I constantly worry about whether my children are warm enough, safe enough, happy enough, and whether I am teaching them enough to navigate the world.

I created a 5.3ft x 9ft quilt top made of almost 7,000 one-inch squares that I individually cut and sewed together. The fabrics are left over from previous things I’ve made for my kids, including the 42 quilts the piece sits on top of. No child needs that many quilts. The quilts are stacked on top of each other because mothering in excess can become “smothering” and counterproductive in raising confident children. My piece illustrates excessiveness, obsession, labour as care, but also overcompensation for feelings of worry and guilt.

Cherie Leung, What I tell my children, 85ft aluminum wire, knitted i-cord (yarn), dimensions variable, 2025.

This is a meandering 85-foot wire insulated by hand-knit i-cord. It is a representation of how I try to pass on life lessons to my children, but how my speeches can be repetitive and digressive, and thus counterproductive.

Cherie Leung, Move aside, cotton canvas, acrylic/wool yarn, thread, 44in x 36in, 2024.

I tell my kids to move aside when someone approaches on the sidewalk - even when they are taking up only half the space. Other people don’t do this when we walk past. I thought I was teaching them to be kind and considerate, but am I really teaching them to be submissive in this Western world where space is power?

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Cherie Leung, Pockets of knowledge, red pockets, resin, approx 6.5in x 3.5in, 2024.

These are “lucky pockets” that adults give children on Chinese New Year. The front has a couplet of well wishes, and inside is supposed to contain money. This one says, “May everything in life go smoothly.” I cast these in resin so that the pockets are closed and inaccessible yet are seen at surface level.

As a second-generation Chinese Canadian parent, I worry about the limited cultural knowledge I pass on to my children. I thought of how, outwardly I am Asian, but internally I don’t have the depth of understanding that my parents have, and what that means for my own identity as well as for future generations.

Cherie Leung, If I were a wall hanging, we would be together, (Left) felt strips, thread, bamboo sticks, 44in x 36in, (Right) jute twine, rope, found stick, 42.5in x 33in, 2024.

This piece is made entirely out of found materials. I worked with them intuitively letting the process guide me, and letting the materials tell me what they wanted to be. I shaped the left piece first, weaving and hand-stitching the pieces in place. I then created the right piece with varying thicknesses of wrapped jute twine and rope. They call out to each-other with a sense of yearning.

Cherie Leung, What does it mean to be a mother?, found materials (felt strips, yarn, thread, plastic rope, scrap metal, wood plank), 26in x 35in, 2024.

This installation began as a series of material studies for my 4th year BFA thesis project. All the materials were found in my school’s “Re-use Depot” (felt strips, yarn, thread, plastic rope, scrap metal, wood plank). I was experimenting with the felt strips to see if I could use them to make sculptural forms. I made the central figure first and then built a narrative around it.

Cherie Leung, What does it mean to be a mother?, found materials (felt strips, yarn, thread, plastic rope, scrap metal, wood plank), 26in x 35in, 2024.

(detail view)

Cherie Leung, What does it mean to be a mother?, found materials (felt strips, yarn, thread, plastic rope, scrap metal, wood plank), 26in x 35in, 2024.

(detail view)

Cherie Leung, When will it be over, natural beeswax and graphite on wood panel, 11in x 14in, 2024.

This piece was made with charcoal pencil and beeswax on wood panel. It was a conceptual exercise that combined process and making. I wrote the words “When will it be over?”, then layered it with beeswax. Once covered, I carved the words out and layered again. Repeating the process manifested the sentiment I was writing.

Cherie Leung, All the things, beads, sequins, embroidery floss, miscellaneous textiles on raw canvas, 71in x 48in, 2024.

This maximalist, abstracted elephant was inspired by my 3-week residency in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The experience was a constant feast for the senses - the rich jewelled tones and gold of the temples, the bright joyful bustle of the markets, the complex flavours of the cuisine, and the intricate details of the local textiles. It is called “All the Things” because it includes all the textile-based techniques we learned and materials I brought back, creating a cacophony to overwhelm and intrigue the viewer.

Cherie Leung, All the things, beads, sequins, embroidery floss, miscellaneous textiles on raw canvas, 71in x 48in, 2024.

(detail view)

Cherie Leung, Bound memories, repurposed clothing, crib sheets, pillow, acrylic ink, yarn on acrylic pegboard, 32in x 44in, 2024.

This object-oriented painting is made with my children’s baby clothes and crib sheets that I could not part with. For me, objects have an essence, a memory, a purpose, and a potential. The process of binding each piece allowed me to “hold on” to them in a way. It was difficult at first, but the act of painting over the clothing helped me to separate the memories from the objects.

Cherie Leung, Where are you? (I'm not here), felt strips, jute, and yarn, 16in(h) x 17in(w) x 17in(d), 2024.

Sometimes I just want to shut out the world.

I was sitting in class and imagining that I wasn't there - I was in a cave and my surroundings were disappearing. I wanted to capture this feeling. This wearable piece is made of felt strips and bound with jute. I used a basket-weaving technique to construct the sculpture and then embroidered the words in thick brown wool around it. When worn, the felt strips effectively muffles one's surroundings, creating a dark, warm, ad safe cave that mimics what I had felt.

Cherie Leung, How are you?, cotton fabric, batting, thread, 35in x 28.5in, 2024.

Cherie Leung, How are you?, cotton fabric, batting, thread, 35in x 28.5in, 2024.

This soft sculpture/wearable captures feelings of comfort and isolation. The hand-stitched words, “I’m fine thank you” are silent but bold, announcing the expected response when someone asks, “How are you?”, regardless of how one really feels.

When worn, the piece looks like a cocoon but is also reminiscent of a straitjacket, which reinforces the restraint of expressing one’s actual mental health.

Cherie Leung, Sprawling, fabric and yarn soft sculpture, approx 31in x 24in x 13in, 2024.

Sometimes I feel like an amorphous blob. Ever expanding, changing, yet directionless.

I used repurposed scraps and yarn from past projects and knitted intuitively – picking up and dropping stitches, attaching and binding off. This piece reflects my artistic journey – building on ideas and materials, reaching forward, circling back, and sometimes feeling stagnant. I need to remind myself to focus on the moment and push away the voice of existential worry.

Cherie Leung, Telling my story, yarn and fabric scraps, approx. 18in x 11.5 x 7.5in, 2023.

This piece is knitted from yarn and fabric from previous projects. The textiles intertwine, representing various memories and experiences to create who the artist is today.

Cherie Leung, I'm Okay, vinyl, cotton batting and emergency blanket, 42in x 35.5in, 2023.

(installation view)

This piece reflects on the need for depression medication. Evocative of a pill packet, it is quilted with a shower curtain, 3 emergency blankets and batting. As with a quilt, the medication provides a sense of comfort and relief.

Cherie Leung, Big Lady and Steve, paper maché and found materials, Big Lady approx. 57in(h)x48in(w)x26in(d); Steve approx. 37in(h) x 48in(l) x 19in(d)_2023.

These large sculptures were inspired by alebrijes after a residency in Oaxaca, Mexico. They are made with pieces of packaging and newspaper salvaged from Oaxaca and from everyday life in Toronto. Meaningful and mundane scraps combine into large, magical, and abstract pieces that are literally formed from memories and experiences.

Cherie Leung, Time Heals All Wounds, embroidery thread, quilting cotton, batting, 9.25in x 32in, 2023.

Fortune cookies are mass-produced, yet we hope desperately that they are true. The process of enlarging and hand-embroidering this piece was a way of personalizing and preserving the message that was received.

Cherie Leung, Time Heals All Wounds, embroidery thread, quilting cotton, batting, 9.25in x 32in, 2023. 

(detail view)

Cherie Leung, Gazelle, mixed textiles (cotton, corduroy, tulle, wig, burlap, wool, felt, twine) on canvas, approx. 75in x 85in, 2023.

An experiment in "painting without paint". The piece is dynamic and can be installed in different positions, mimicking the movement of a gazelle.

Cherie Leung, Gazelle, mixed textiles (cotton, corduroy, tulle, wig, burlap, wool, felt, twine) on canvas, approx. 75in x 85in, 2023.

(detail view)

Cherie Leung - Visceral Series (installation view), 2023

(installation view)

This series comprise 4 works of abstracted forms that evoke feelings of the body.

Cherie Leung, Open, felt, zipper, yarn batting, 44.25in x 18in, 2023.

The size, scale and abstract form causes us to think about the body within different spatial narratives. The form is figurative, but ambiguous. It can be interpreted as different body parts (whole figure, tongue, lips, legs, genitalia), each creating a different narrative. 

Cherie Leung, Capsule, resin and artificial hair on wood panel, 12in x 16in, 2023.

Hair stays long after our bodies disintegrate. Pill-shaped resin capsules further freezes the hair as a comment on preservation, science and medicine.

Cherie Leung, Spill, knit fabric yarn, dimensions varied, 2023.

Installed at torso height, this long crocheted chain creates a mass resembling entrails.

Cherie Leung, Smile, latex, 34in x 25in, 2023.

Use of latex in this piece evokes a skin-like texture. The "lumps" could be interpreted as lumps in the body (e.g., cysts, tumours), and the form at the bottom centre is shaped like a smile with teeth.