When Cheryl Poland was 7 years old, she discovered she had a talent and passion for drawing.  When she was 11, she had her first nationally published drawing in “The Quarter Horse Journal” in 1967.
     Born in Selma, Alabama, Cheryl’s mother was a portrait artist and her father an Air Force Pilot.  She grew up traveling throughout the United States and Alaska at the different places her father was stationed.  During the summers, Cheryl would visit her uncle’s farm where she first began riding horses and fell in love.  When she wasn’t riding she was sketching horses and other animals, developing the signature style that marks Cheryl’s work.
     She became a commissioned artist at 18 after entering the Stebbins Art Studio in Kemah, Texas.  Her subject matter and unique style of art have been very marketable throughout the area but by the time she was 20 she had began working with a master sign painter Leo Sosa in Houston, Texas. 
     Sosa taught her calligraphy, freehand lettering on cars, pin stripping, banners, logo design and Cheryl began to do murals on vehicles and buildings.  During her time with Sosa she also continued to develop her craft in Bic Pen Illustration submitting drawings for publication in The Horseman Magazine in 1983, Horse Illustrated Magazine in 1993 and Dog Fancy Magazine in 1994.  She has also contributed several written articles to these publications.
     Since then Cheryl has been working with oils painting horses, cowboys, portraits and wildlife.  Her work has been featured at The Stebbins Art Gallery in Kemah, Texas, The Baker Arts Center in Liberal, Kansas, The Main Gallery in Ulysses, Kansas, The Arts Center on Main in Garden City, Kansas, The Hugoton Library Art Show in Hugoton, Kansas, as well as many other galleries and shows throughout the mid-west area.
     Cheryl is a member of “Oil Painters of America” (OPA), and an active member of both The American Paint Horse Association (APHA) and The National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA).