Britt Hoffman here...
I am all about spreading love
through art, design and storytelling.
Disabilities = Superpowers
I’m Britt Hoffman and I am an illustrative painter and designer living in West Texas. I currently reside in Midland, Texas where I am a writer and storyteller through my visual work and blogs.
At a very early age I lost the ability to hear from my left ear. This made me a little bit off balance, a little bit hard of hearing (more like a lot) and a little bit different.
I didn’t always catch the punchline of a joke or hear every bit of a conversation…
In fact, so much of so many conversations were always lost in the beginning.
I had to learn to listen, and not just hear but really pay attention to what everyone was saying by learning to read lips and body language. I learned to be an empathic listener and this also helped me grow into the empathetic person I am today.
This disability I grew up with would become my every day reminder to push forward and not let anything get in the way. It also made me very quiet and a loner at times. You would definitely always find me doing something creative on my own just observing everything around me.
Never Without Art
It was during that time on my own that I found myself drawing, painting and even creating anything I could think of out of anything around me or the many things my family would bring from school (most of them were educators.)
And the things I would create! I once created a truck out of a boot box that I could wear and even a go go gadget hat (with the flying mechanism that would pop out) from construction paper. And not to mention the pins I could create out of pipe cleaners.
I was never without art, my family was very supportive early on. And my teachers too. I can name them all starting from grade school, Ms. Blaine, Ms. Cowen, Mr. Sanchez, Mrs. Parga and so many more.
No Money in Theater…
My love for design would be inspired by my college professors. I went to the college of the University of Texas at El Paso and received a double major in Liberal Arts for Theatre and Graphic Design with a minor in Printmaking.
I did a bit of theater in highschool through One Act Plays for UIL. I was still the introverted, quiet kid but this pushed me to be a bit more outgoing and these were my people that were different and accepted me for me.
So I decided to take theater and make it my subject to study in college. Until, my mother asked me what all moms ask, “and what kind of jobs can you get with a theater degree?” Well? That never crossed my mind as I was doing something I enjoyed!
Art + Design + Love
After a bit she did suggest why not something art related since I alway drew and was very good at it. I took it a step further and thought since I was self taught in art and through school growing up why not design? I can learn a trade that would allow me to work in many different fields and positions.
I quickly fell in love with the technical aspects of design and how simple and clean something could look. I still, however, craved the illustration of the art world. Together, I merge my love for art and design bringing paintings to life with some design elements.
My work currently revolves around the themes of love through the use of popular characters from comics and movies. I love to explore the idea of keeping that inner childlike spirit alive and providing a nostalgic escape.
I hope as you explore my page, you will feel loved and supported for who you are through the experiences I write in my blog.