Cheryl Young isn't sure how it happened, but growing up, she was always “the animal person.” Young’s great-grandfather had originally operated a farm on the Brunswick property she was raised on, and the family still kept chickens, ducks and rabbits. Despite being one of four girls, it was Young who rose early to let the animals out of their coops and came home before sunset to usher them back in. In the fields surrounding her home, it also wasn’t uncommon for Young to see wild foxes or moose passing through.

“It's like one of my friends pointed out, other than human beings, what's the greatest population on this Earth? It's animals and we interact with them all the time,” said Young.

It was natural that animals become prominent subjects in her drawings. Young’s grandmother, Gladys Wilson, was a school principal and a major supporter of her work. She often hosted gatherings with her colleagues and always made sure to show off Young’s latest piece, much to Young’s embarrassment at the time. 

“Some of them were my teachers. I just about died,” she recalled. 

Young describes herself as a lover of detail. This is in part why she’s drawn to animals because their bodies offer a variety of colors and textures to study. For example, birds alone have smooth beaks, shiny eyes and vibrantly textured feathers Young can capture with her colored pencils. However, foxes are her favorite to draw. “Nothing's better than you looking at a field and seeing a fox running through it. The way their tail floats above the grass – I just love that.”

Young also often depicts scenes between animals and their young. As a mother of two children, Young feels a connection between her maternal feelings and what she observes in the wild. This theme resulted in one of her pieces being bought by a family therapist. 

“I think of art as a language. And when somebody comes and connects with one of my pictures, it's like we're speaking the same language and we understand so much,” Young said.

Her children, Callista and Toliver, have always been supporters and inspirations for Young’s creative work. When they were growing up, Young threw her artistic abilities into decorating for events or sewing their clothes. She still does costume pieces for historical or Live Action Roleplay (LARPing) events and, with encouragement from her son, started selling them on Etsy. 

Young’s proudest achievement came after she almost died after an operation at 40. “After I survived that, it changed my life. I started not being afraid of what people thought.”

Young’s newfound confidence saw her write and draw the covers for her book series “The Travels to Fahdamin-Ra,” a modern fairy tale that follows two siblings as they travel to the African-inspired world of Fahdamin-Ra. Young was inspired by her children, who are biracial, after hearing them complain that no book protagonists looked like them.

“That's how actually I finally got back into doing art,” said Young. “I just think that art that's beautiful uplifts you. There's so much ugliness in the world. Why not have something make you feel good?” 

Young’s work is on display at Boothbay Region Art Foundation. She will also have a one-person show at Southport Library from Aug. 31 to Oct. 28.