Artist Biography

Cyrah Dardas is an eco-romantic artist living in Detroit /Waawiyaatanong, Anishinaabe territory. Cyrah’s work is informed by their experience as a parent, her work in childcare, as an educator, in growing plants, as a member of artist cooperatives and through relationship to the land. Their practice is deeply rooted in ritualized art making, using the process as a tool for grief composition, sensuous repair and collective healing. Their finished pieces are an archive of their continual seeking and learning, of a somatic remembering, of a way of engaging in and relating to the world. Dardas has presented works with the College for Creative Studies Detroit, The Shepherd and MdW Fair. They have been in residency within Sidewalk Detroit, Newlab, Room Project and BULK space.

“ I have been really enchanted by learning how to make dyes and paint. I think I find it interesting because it feels like a form of interspecies collaboration. I am interested in the ways that folks integrate elements of Place or the landscape and ecosystem into their art making practice, and how those artifacts become a reflection of the ecology they are made from. I really wanted to learn those processes and pull from histories of people making in this way, so I began researching ancient paint and dye making techniques and just immersing myself in the practice. In connection to this, I cultivated a growing practice that included some dye plants as well as many edible and pollinator plants. Gardening, foraging and exploring in this way has taught me so much about play, interdependency, and reciprocity. ”