Cori Crooks is a seeker and teller, artfully documenting her unique take on life through a variety of media including prose, music, theater, visual art, and jewelry. Cori gained initial notoriety in 2004 through her art/life blog, “A Gag Reflex,” which followed the search for her paternity and established her as an off-beat, quirky talent with a devoted cult following of fans drawn to her edgy writing style. Her first book, a critically acclaimed mixed media art memoir entitled "Sweet Charlotte's Seventh Mistake" was published by Seal Press in 2009, garnering such accolades as the Best Book List 2009/Tulsa World, Editor's Pick/Curve Magazine, and Indie Press of the Month/Modern Times Bookstore, SF.
"Cori writes like Siouxsie screams!" says writer/filmmaker/musician, Patrick O'Neil. Her work reflects a hands on, in-the-street engagement with life, a constant thread though her diverse artistic background which has spanned writing and directing plays, recording/touring with indie rock bands, and studying Humanities at San Francisco State University.
Cori’s art work is born from thoughts about history, social class, and pop culture; blending the old and the new, exploring traditional crafts and techniques while giving them sassy modern twists. Her decorative miniature tile jewelry has been featured in group shows at the SFMOMA Artists Gallery, the California Museum, and in the past has been available through the American Museum of Ceramic Art, the Phoenix Art Museum, the Catalina Island Museum, and the Museum of Latin American Art.
Cori is now working her second book, "Cherryland", a graphic coming-of-age novel. She lives and loves in the San Francisco Bay Area.