About Shari

Shari Paladino is an artist, designer and educator in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has exhibited work at the Berkeley Art Museum, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Richmond Art Center. She attended University of California, Berkeley, earning her bachelor’s degree in art education and disability studies, as well as a master’s degree in fine arts. Shari developed curriculum for UC Berkeley’s Department of Art Practice in conjunction with the Jacobs Center for Design and Innovation. She continues to teach at UC Berkeley and California College of the Arts.

Offering two decades of experience teaching art, Shari works with kids across all spectrums of learning. She also coaches parents in working with their kids to incorporate a creative practice at home.

The concept for CPS emerged from Shari’s work as an artist and educator, as well as her own childhood experiences.

As a kid raised in a blended multi-racial family, along with having overlooked learning disabilities, Shari had all the feels that come with being a bit different. This impacted her academic performance and social-emotional skills.

Shari is keenly aware that she became a creative practitioner both in spite of and because of her differences. What often felt like failures to “fit in” or “get it right” were actually the wellspring out of which she developed her innate creativity. Where she was challenged, there was always a creative workaround to discover.

Shari experienced a new kind of success, one that felt all her own. It was a glowing sensation that she describes as an authentic happiness that came from the inside

By tapping into this inward source, she unlearned the habit of looking outward for approval. As she developed her creative practice, she found inward approval, love and value.

Shari brings all of this to her work with kids, teaching them to pursue their innate creativity with courage.

Her goal is to help them lean into the unique makeup of themselves and their feelings. These ways of moving, making and being are gifts!

When people describe themselves as “not creative,” Shari believes wholeheartedly that this is not true. Instead, she sees it as a reaction to a traditional model of art education that focuses more on outcome rather than creativity.

This is why Shari is so passionate about her approach to art making. By nurturing kids to build a creative practice, she teaches them the tools to develop social-emotional skills, mindful body awareness and a growth mindset.

About Shari

Shari helps people live happier lives by teaching them how to develop innate creativity and a sense of belonging that shines from the inside out!