Penny Brooshooft from Eclette

Perth-based artist Penny Brooshooft, from Eclette, transforms everyday paper and card waste into beautifully imperfect, vibrant and sustainable handmade vessels and objects.

Words: Hande Renshaw I Photography: Courtesy of Eclette

‘I like to look at a colour and experience it; in terms of what it might remind me of, where it might have come from and what is it about the colour that captivates me,’ says Penny Brooshooft.

Penny Brooshooft from Eclette in her Perth studio.

‘I like that the imperfect textures tell the story of my process and my hand leaving marks. Imperfection to me is perfect.’

‘Even though my pieces are ‘new’, I like to think that their imperfections tell the story of their past as an entirely different entity—a packaging box, an egg carton, a bill, a financial statement, a magazine.’

‘My vessel forms emerge through an interplay of intention and improvisation. Sometimes I sketch a concept and create corresponding moulds, while other times unexpected shapes unfold through spontaneously joining moulded pieces.’

‘I think colour is emotive, and sparks joy. I’ve never understood a neutral colour palette —it’s not what my eye is drawn to, and it doesn’t make me feel anything.’

‘I love working with cardcrete as it ‘s incredibly versatile… I can create very smooth finishes or highly textured ones, and I can build endless forms by hand sculpting or joining shapes together, which allows myriad possibilities.

“Art, as an industry, is no stranger to waste contribution, so to align my core value of sustainable living with my passion for art—it’s really important for me to be working with a medium that’s environmentally conscious.”

— Penny Brooshooft

‘I’ll see a colour on something—a tiny corner of an artwork, a décor piece in an interior, and I’ll fall in love with it in isolation of any context. I like that colours can surprise me like this continuously.’

‘Beyond the emotive aspect of colour, it also acts as another layer of storytelling in my pieces. Bold colours can make certain elements like texture stand out, guiding the viewer’s eye and emphasising specific aspects of the design.’

At first glance, Perth-based artist Penny Brooshooft’s sculptural pieces could easily be mistaken for solid ceramic works, but when we lean in a little closer, we find that they’re lightweight, tactile and actually handmade out of recycled paper!

Swapping clay for discarded paper, egg cartons and cardboard, which she collects from waste at home, her neighbours or husband’s office recycling bins, Penny utilises as much paper waste as she can, committed to playing her part in environmental awareness for the creation of her vessels and objects. ‘My background in environmental science ignited a deep connection with the environment. I hate (with a passion!) waste generation, and I know my place in the world as a contributor of waste, which has led me to find ways to live as sustainably as I can within my means,’ shares Penny.

As the daughter of an artist and builder, creativity has been part of Penny’s life for as long as she can remember—growing up, she was surrounded by artwork by her mother, in the home her father hand-built. ‘I guess there’s got to be a genetic component to my creativity,’ she says.

Pursuing her love for animals and the environment, Penny stepped away from creativity and studied Zoology and Conservation Biology at The University of Western Australia, graduating with Honours in Zoology in 2010. ‘I worked professionally as a consultant zoologist for 13 years, over this time working in many remote locations throughout Western Australia; wrestling lizards, counting cute furry mammals and dodging snakes falling from the sky!’ she says.

It was during long service leave that Penny started to yearn for a creative outlet, and it was then the idea for Eclette was ignited. ‘In the end, I never returned to consulting after my six-month break, and it’s now been over three years of pursuing my creativity full-time.’

Penny’s medium of choice is affectionately called Cardcrete, coined by her sister-in-law, as it dries hard like concrete, but it’s made from recycled cardboard and paper—an extension of the more well-known medium papier maché. ‘I love working with cardcrete as it’s incredibly versatile… I can create very smooth finishes or highly textured ones, and I can build endless forms by hand-sculpting or joining shapes together, which allows a myriad of possibilities,’ says Penny.

The medium’s environmental focus is a major motivator for the artist, ‘Art, as an industry, is no stranger to waste contribution, so to align my core value of sustainable living with my passion for art—it's really important for me to be working with a medium that’s environmentally conscious,’ she adds.

The bright, colourful vessels are beautiful imperfect, their uneven and irregular forms each tell a story. ‘Even though my pieces are ‘new’, I like to think that their imperfections tell the story of their past as an entirely different entity—a packaging box, an egg carton, a bill, a financial statement or a magazine.’

Looking ahead, Penny is excited about her creative journey, surrendering to where it will take her. ‘My art is on a journey and I’m a passenger—I don’t know where it will take me next. I’m looking forward to pushing my medium into new forms and seeing what’s possible.’