CHERYL BRAGANZA is a gifted artist and poet.  Of Goan origin, she was born in Bombay and grew up in Lahore where her parents owned Braganza Hotel (referenced in "Freedom at Midnight" Collins & Lapierre). After studying languages and the arts in Rome and classical piano in London, she moved to Montreal in 1966.    Essentially self-taught, her subjects vary from evocative landscapes, lush florals to vibrant figures of Indian women.
She has exhibited regularly and established herself as a Quebec artist with a style of her own, using brilliant color and texture to express emotion.

To see a retrospective of her work, click on the following link:

Cheryl Braganza's Art Gallery online: www.picturetrail.com/cherylbraganza

Also showcased at the following site:
http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/
yourgallery/artist_profile/Cheryl+Braganza/11369.html

A word from the Artist:
"I want my art to play a role in lifting people's spirits, in challenging their assumptions, in provoking thought ....thus promoting dialogue between peoples towards peace. It is my belief that women will be the dynamic force to inspire a more caring, loving world...."
As a writer, she is presently working on her memoirs and has been appointed the Regional Representative in Montreal for the IWWG  (International Women Writers Guild - www.iwwg.org). She is also a member of the Quebec Writers Federation (www.QWF.org)as well as the English Language Arts Network (www.quebec-elan.org)

You can read her collection of poems entitled "Only Goodbyes" here.

Read her article in the McGill University Newsletter on why she is committed to helping Afghan women:
http://www.mcgill.ca/files/mcrtw/December2002.pdf

To contact herby email:cherylbraganza@videotron.ca

"We are glad to inform that Cheryl Braganza has been chosen for the MONTREAL WOMAN OF THE YEAR AWARD FOR 2008 .
It's an award that is given out each year by the Montreal Council of Women, a provincial and a national umbrella organization. It is the first time a woman of Indian origin has been chosen. .." - The Montreal Gazette >>

".....Finally, I think that what touches us most about Cheryl’s paintings is hope and the respect for life that we see mirrored there--in the Goan market-woman,  sitting at the side of the road, looking squarely at the viewer, in the woman, startled by the wonder of a butterfly, in the mother and her children, dancing in celebration. .." Read the full Introductory speech by Evadne Anderson during the Awards Function on 17th Nov 2008 and her own moving response to being chosen the Woman of the Year, with glimpses unforgettable into the life of a woman who hailed from Pakistan and who dared and won the hearts of thousands in a place far off from her birthplace.

• Only Goodbyes - A collection of Poems >>