We recently connected with Brooke Duckart and have shared our conversation below.

Brooke, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I loved to draw and construct things with hands from a super young age. I was a very curious child, super observant, and the act of recreating things that I saw, as well as things from my imagination, came easily to me and brought me a lot of joy. These skills also brought me noticeable praise and encouragement that really fueled me. In Elementary school, my ability to draw whatever my classmates asked of me, kept me safe and “liked” even though I was super shy and awkward kid otherwise. In Middle school, I was a bit obsessed with cartoon characters, and I was often caught drawing them in the back of class when I was supposed to be doing other school work. I eventually had a teacher make me do a “How to Draw Fred Flintstone” presentation for my classmate. I was painfully shy and dreaded the thought of it. I felt like I was going to pass out when I stood in front of everyone, but as soon as the light projector switched on and I began to draw for the class, the entire room was buzzing as my they followed along step-by-step. I was surrounded by lots of infectious laughter, received so many kind words from my peers, and I recall feeling like a little rockstar for weeks afterwards. I knew then that I wanted to continue to make art that made my peers smile or laugh. As I grew older, I became fascinated with just how powerful art can be for all expression, not just joy, as well as an incredible tool for connection, storytelling, inspiration, and healing.

Brooke, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am an Interdisciplinary Artist, most known for the work I did as a Puppet Hair & Fur Fabricator at LAIKA animation studio for a little under a decade, and for my personal project of air-plant monsters called, AiryBEASTS, where I try to create characters that are both creepy and cute, or fascinating and repulsive, or funny and scary. I like to play. I will occasionally create a big batch of AiryBEASTS and sell them in my Etsy shoppe. I primarily share the works in-progress, the finished beasts, and updates about shop availability on my Instagram account (@brookeduckart) if you are interested.

A lot of my other works contain similar plays with cognitive dissonance, but I also make work with themes of communication and various levels of connection, I like to explore the imagined and real beasts in our minds and lives, as well as depictions of my dreams and nightmares. Over all, I am ridiculously curious about how our minds work, and how we can use Art to express ourselves and relate to the world around us.

Which is why I am currently back in school, working towards becoming an Art Therapist. I have had a growing desire over my years to use my creative skills to help others on deeper levels because I know how much the Arts have formed me and helped my mental health throughout my life. I am passionate about pursuing this career shift, as I know Art can literally save lives. I feel like it saved mine.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I think every Artist needs to build up their resilience. Period. It is not always easy, but it is necessary in any creative industry. The ability to make a mistakes, and then learn from that stumble and continue on growing from it, is paramount. Recognizing that short-falls are merely lessons on your journey, and not personal shortcomings. Some of my best pieces would never have come about without learning from my past mistakes cumulatively. And sometimes you’ll come to recognize that if you feel like you keep making mis-steps on you journey, maybe it is a sign that you need to fully switch direction. I have switched directions a bit in my journey. I started as a Graphic Artist in the Agency World for a few years, then switched to get on my Animation path for a little under a decade, and now on the road to being an Art Therapist. That’s a broad summary, as there were plenty of side quests between those as I learned more about myself and grew my resilience.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Being able to connect with others, especially with those that otherwise struggle to connect. Some of us struggle to find words to express ourselves, some may not even be able to speak because of language barriers, and the nonverbal communication of art and movement can translate across cultures. Art is powerful. Being an Artist is empowering.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.brookeduckart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brookeduckart
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brooke.duckart
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brookeduckart
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/brookeduckart
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/brookeduckart

Image Credits
Steven Wong Jr. took two of these photos, the one I want for the feature of me holding foward some of my pumpkin themed AiryBEASTS, and the one of me holding Fluffy Monkey at LAIKA. Others I took myself.