Brooklyn is an artist and costume designer practicing in Calgary, Alberta and pursuing a BFA with a major in painting at Alberta University of the Arts. In their art practice they are interested in creating theatrical paintings that explore the performative nature of identity.
In my art practice I primarily use oil paint on canvas in order to create different dream-like narratives that explore identity. Narratives inform our world-views and identities extensively, however I often find myself frustrated with the lack of nuance given to women and queer characters, driving me to paint something different. These paintings are a theatrical production, and as such I also sew costumes inspired by different moments in history to use as reference. The documentation of these costumes often end up portraying some kind of performance. I am interested in the ways that history informs the present-day happenings of the world, particularly in relation to common perceptions of women and queer people. In these photographs the subject wears a costume of a different time when women who acted different were quick to be labelled as suffering with hysteria. Researching the history of the perception people had on mental health has helped me understand how I fit into the present context, and why people hold certain beliefs that they may not know the root of.