Brooke Newman was born in 1968 in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. Her parents, Paula and Jerry Heindl were both art majors at University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. Brooke was the eldest of twelve children. Her father’s work sent the family all across the country. The large family found themselves “home” in eight different states throughout her childhood; every move was a significant learning experience for her.
The majority of her youth was spent in the deserts of the Southwest, in the Phoenix valley. It was there that Brooke developed her sense of what art was; the vastness of the open skies, the simple, yet bold colors of the dry landscapes, and artworks of the rich Native American culture seen everywhere. Brooke’s father was a talented oil painter. Painting “fieldtrips” to the galleries of Scottsdale and Sedona still influence her work today.
Having experienced firsthand the financial struggles that come from the life of an artistic father, Brooke vowed to never use her creative talents to make a living for herself. She instead chose to take a more “traditional” career route. From her mid-twenties, her career was mainly in the hospitality business. Eight of those years were spent managing banquet departments for large hotel convention centers.
In 2010, at the age of 42, after deciding that there must be a more fulfilling work for her to do, Brooke enrolled at UW Stevens Point. Her intent was to study psychology. After taking an elective class, Survey of World Art, her focus quickly changed. Brooke decided to renege on that early vow and “take the leap” into art. She declared an Art major and graduated in May 2016 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a focus on 2D work. She found her passion in painting and photography and with this hopes to inspire many people to follow their dreams, no matter what age.
Brooke plans to pursue her Master’s Degree in Painting and to then teach art at a college level. She currently lives in Stevens Point with her teenage son, Seth.