18 Facts About Moki Cherry

Moki Cherry's practice traversed the worlds of art, music, and theater with diverse influences such as Indian art and music, Tibetan Buddhism, fashion, traditional folk arts and dress, abstraction, cartoons, and pop art.

Moki Cherry's designs appeared on Don's album covers and as costumes worn by him in concert.

Moki Cherry was born Monika Marianne Karlsson on 8 February 1943 in Koler in Norrbotten, Sweden.

In 1962 Moki moved to Stockholm to study fashion and textiles at Beckman's School of Design, where she specialised in illustration, pattern design, and design of clothes.

Moki Cherry was an exceptional student and received high marks.

Moki Cherry became friends with fellow artist Susanne Beckman while they were both studying at the school and they remained life-long friends.

Moki Cherry met jazz musician Don Cherry in 1963 while he was on tour in Stockholm with Sonny Rollins.

Moki Cherry graduated from Beckman's in 1966 and traveled to New York to work in fashion and join Don who was living there at the time.

Moki Cherry was receiving recognition as a young artist-designer too and was offered a permanent design job with the photographer Bert Stern, but instead returned to Stockholm with Don and Neneh.

The first concert they did under this name was at ABF Huset in Stockholm where Moki Cherry designed the set and did live painting during the performance.

Moki Cherry played tambura in the Organic Music performances and her tapestries would surround the sets.

Moki Cherry created costumes and artworks in the dome during this residency, which included a mandala that she painted on the floor each day.

In 1973, Moki Cherry had her first solo exhibition of tapestries and paintings at Gallery 1 in Stockholm, which featured tapestries, paintings and live music performances, as well as a smaller recreation of the bucky dome built by Bengt Carling that they lived in at Moderna Museet two years before.

The Moki Cherry's home at the old schoolhouse in Tagarp was a communal space where music performances, film screenings, and exhibitions took place as part of an artistic collective.

In 1978 Moki Cherry started Octopuss Theater, a children's theatre group, at Tagarp Schoolhouse with her friend Anita Roney and children from the area such as Anita's son Shanti Roney.

Moki Cherry made the sets and costumes for the group, who performed in Malmo, Gothenburg, and in Stockholm at Moderna Museet.

In 1981, Moki Cherry started her "Talking Heads" sculpture series which were made out of wood and light.

Moki Cherry started working predominantly in collage during the 2000s and worked in painting and tapestry in the last few years before her death.