A&S Class of ’24: Art History Major Cameron Cherry’s Next Step Is the Met

Media studies and art history major Cameron Cherry graduates with two degrees this spring, and after Final Exercises, she’ll begin an internship in art education at the Met, New York City’s acclaimed Metropolitan Museum of Art, the largest art museum in the Americas and fourth largest in the world.

Originally a transfer student from Ohio State University, Cherry fell in love with the arts and art history after a summer curatorial internship at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

“I’m really interested in curatorial work, designing exhibitions and networking with artists,” Cherry said.  But she’s also done work in fundraising and development, including an internship with that focus at UVA’s Fralin Museum of Art, and feels that may be the role she ultimately wants to play. 

“That’s really the backbone of museum work,” Cherry said.

As a student of the arts, Cherry is interested in a wide variety of styles and periods, but lately, she’s been interested in the French Rococo style of art and ornamentation from the mid-1700s, the art of Medieval manuscripts and African contemporary artists like painter Toyin Ojih Odutola, whose fictional portraits chronicle the lives of aristocratic Nigerian families, and painters Kahinde Wiley and Kerry James Marshall.  But Cherry also values the opportunities she’s had to be part of the arts community at UVA.

Following the tragedy on Grounds in the fall of 2022, art professor Francesca Fiorani reached out to her students to offer her support and invited members of her global-renaissance seminar to dinner at her house, a caring gesture Cherry feels could only happen at a place like UVA.

“Her cooking was incredible,” Cherry said.  “And food heals.”

This spring, she wraps up her internship at the Fralin, as one of the installations she’s had a chance to help create opens to the public.

“That’s been such a cool opportunity,” Cherry said, “And now I can say that I helped curate an exhibition.”

Cherry’s interest in the arts has also led her to join CRAVE, a student organization focused on fashion and fashion trends.  An acronym for “Creative, Raw and Very Edgy” the club, that she now co-directs, has given her an opportunity to express herself at UVA and the opportunity to help produce the club’s annual spring fashion show.

As a member of the University Programs Council’s Arts Enrichment Committee, Cherry played a central role in planning a screening of the movie Night at the Museum, an event that took place at night in a museum.

Greek life has also been an important part of Cherry’s undergraduate career.  A member of Chi Omega, her connections helped her find a place to live this summer in New York City, but they also helped make her transition to UVA a little easier.  Being a member of the sorority at both universities created opportunities for her to find community at UVA.

And while she’s excited about the chance to move to one of the most important cities in the art world to work at one of its most iconic museums, she’s certain she’ll miss the small town feel of Charlottesville, both the University community and the people she’s met working as a nanny outside of her time in the museum and the classroom.

“I really like this little town,” Cherry said.