Malak Cherri is a Michigan-based painter born in Beirut, Lebanon. In 2006, she completed, with honors, a master’s degree in translation from the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Lebanon. As someone who appreciates art, in 2020 she began her artistic journey by taking classes at Henry Ford College to learn the painting practice. Along with caring for her four beloved children and painting, she enjoys cooking for family and friends, collecting antiques, and interior decorating in her spare time. After winning a featured spot in the Looking Glass Magazine Vol.5 (2020), an Honorable Mention in the Student Fine Art Competition in 2021, a second place award in the 2D category of the Land Conference Student Fine Art Competition in 2023, best of show in the 3rd Annual Greatest Student Exhibition directed by The In Art Gallery, and a first place award in the 2D category of the LAND Conference in 2024, she was recently awarded another first place for her painting “From the Rubble,” as well as second place for her painting “Sun-Kissed Recitation” in the Central Region in the 2024 Literary Magazine Competition; additionally, in 2025, Malak won 2nd place regional in the Literary Magazine Competition with her painting “Resilience” for “best artwork”—with the same piece being featured on the cover for the Looking Glass Magazine Vol.7—and a prestigious Kresge fellowship in Visual Arts.

In my work I try to achieve a warm, inviting aura with the way I combine subjects, their cultures, and the atmosphere around them. Whether they are figures in traditional decor, or people across West Asia living their everyday lives, I try my best to translate said images with my own personality and experience—especially given as I am from the region as well, bridging the gap between it and those with no exposure to my peoples. 

I play with a variety of textures and styles in these portrayals to bring the overall composition together—rough globs of paint mixed with the occasional smooth strokes to accurately portray the emotions within a chosen culturally-influenced scene. Using various techniques, I hope to provide the viewer with—in a sense—nostalgia, and to entice the observer to linger and muse on the aftermaths of painted scenes.

The titles of my works are both in English and Arabic languages; I wanted to keep my work open to different interpretations and allow it to move into different directions of thought, as each language has its own beauty and nuances. I also wanted my work to reach a wider audience with different heritages and backgrounds.