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Sonni Cooper's Biography
aka Sandra Cooper
Sonni has had a number of careers, often simultaniously, but art was her first and her primary profession.
Galleries
Her paintings have been shown in major galleries in New York City, Santa Fe, Taos, Seattle, and Los Angeles as well as in numerous juried shows in both the U.S. and Canada. Galleries in Taos and Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Austin, TX currently represent her.
Other Professional Careers
Sonni has always been a Renaissance woman, possessing many facets and talents, most conducted under the name Sonni Cooper. As owner and President of Creative Enterprises she designed and produced educational multimedia projects, including the story, animation, illustrations, and documentation accompanying the computer programs. She has danced and acted professionally on stage and in films. As a publicist for Star Trek's William Shatner, she designed, produced, and distributed merchandising items, and was designer and editor of publications that were distributed worldwide. She is also a published author. One of her science fiction novels, Black Fire (Simon and Schuster) was on the bestseller list and was chosen the best Star Trek novel published in the first 25 years of Star Trek. She was a consultant-writer for the Star Trek films and has published Romance novels and written two soap opera novels for Proctor and Gamble's As the World Turns. She was the Assistant Director of the Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Council, founder of the Northwest Association on Indian Affairs, and developed culturally based science educational materials for Native American elementary school students.
Education
Sonni graduated from The Cooper Union Art School, NYC, with a major in sculpture, has a BFA from the University of Colorado (art history), and graduate school at the University of Illinois (painting). She also attended Adams State University, Alamosa, Colorado (graduate studies) with a major in Anthropology, specializing in the culture of the American Indian.
Art Activities
Her work is represented in museums in the United States, and Asia as well as in many private collections. She is currently working in acrylics, pastels, and acrylic inks. Her recent work has concentrated on nonobjective acrylic paintings
Honors and Recognition
Sonni was selected International Woman of the Year in the field of Art, 1999/2000 and as one of the outstanding 2000 intellectuals of the 20th Century, by the International Biographical Centre, Cambridge, England. She is listed in the Dictionary of International Biography 2001, Outstanding People of the 20th Century, International Who's Who, Who's Who in America, Who's Who of Women, The International Biography, Who's Who in Executives and Professionals, Who's Who in Entertainment, Who's Who in the West, and Who's Who in Information Technology.