Brooke, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
A native of Atlanta, I grew up in Sandy Springs. I have always had two passions: horses and art. At age three I picked up my first paint brushes and that very same year, I sat on a horse for the very first time. I am so lucky to have found my two vocations at such a young age. A visit to the High Museum in elementary school gave me the desire to want my art in a museum one day. My parents’ friends, fervent art collectors, led me to decide that being a professional artist was not only a passion but a career. Having traveled extensively as a youth, I developed a great admiration for Europe and the rich culture in architecture and museums. After graduating high school, I moved to Paris, France to study and attended an American University while learning a new language and living amongst great works of art. As I studied at university, my desire was consistent in wanting to become an artist and I found ways to audit classes at the Fine Arts School in Paris. Painting, I knew, was my career calling and against all wishes of my parents, I decided to carve that path. But I could not practice my art to my best knowledge without the horses.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I think that no matter what road we may decide to take, as long as you are doing what you love, life is a an exciting adventure. Taking sole charge of a stud for several years proved very time consuming yet incredibly rewarding. Thanks to that experience, I have become very intent on painting horses to the best I possibly can, understanding their growth and development from foal to retired broodmare. I must say I have the great luck of also being the child of a mother who allowed me to travel all over the world allowing me to open to other markets and audiences to show my work.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I knew that in order to stand out you had to be very different than others but that standing out made you outstanding. I had to do something of my very own, something that would help me different in the category of painting. Since I love to paint and I love to sculpt, I have developed my technique of sculpting white and beige oil paint in order to create an image that is ever so changing with lighting. The relief in the paint allows for light and shadow in order to have an ever so changing image. I am most proud of my accomplishments in the past when winning painting salons, acquiring excellent gallery representation, participating in TV for my paintings, getting great articles in magazines and newspapers, and mostly to be able to practice what I love.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Being different from peers is revoking the idea of popularity. That was ok for me because my passion was more important than grade school popularity. Because of this choice, I was a very solitary child and liked to practice my two favorite disciplines as much as possible as quite an obsession. If I was faced with punishment, my parents sent me to my room. Little to their knowledge, that was a reward, for I could create paintings and listen to old records of classical music for hours on end. I was a competitive child and attended equestrian showjumping competitions on weekends and in the summer. Often, my art teachers sent my work to competitions, and I was awarded many prizes thanks to their efforts. I would skip school to practice horse riding when my art teacher wouldn’t let me attend classes at every class period. My horses and my art were and still are my best friends.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.brooke-major.com/en
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/brookeseeart
