Brooklyn Bell has the kind of career most people dream of. The 27-year-old is both a professional artist and athlete, having worked with brands ranging from Patagonia to REI and Subaru. She boasts upward of 52,000 followers on her Instagram, @badgal_brooky, where she spotlights both her nature-inspired illustrations and impressive athletic endeavors.
Though she calls Bellingham home, her work takes Bell across the world. On the day we spoke, she’d just returned from shooting a ski run with the crew of “The Approach,” a skiing/snowboarding film about “elevating women, people of color and adaptive athletes.”
“I just got back from Alaska; I was in Europe before that,” Bell said. “During the winter and the summers, I’m pretty busy. Skiing and ski filming is all-encompassing … I work on art more during the shoulder seasons.”
But despite being an athlete since college and a lifelong artist, Bell never imagined pursuing these interests as a career — and she partially credits Bellingham with making her dreams a reality.
“It’s amazing being in a place that supports artists, but then also has such a rich outdoor culture,” she said.
Artistry
Bell was raised in an entrepreneurial family and describes herself as always having been “a bit of a hustler.” She developed an interest in graphic design as editor of her high school yearbook, then went on to study design at Western Washington University.
And while illustration and sports might seem like distinct pursuits, Bell’s artistry is intertwined with her life outdoors. Her partly digital, partly hand-drawn illustrations are inspired by Pacific Northwestern scenery, namely mountains, and are distinctive for their bright colors and bold, intricate linework. She works with brands such as Hydroflask, EVO, Backcountry and Smith Optics as both an artist and an athlete.
But art and adventure collide on more than just her resume: Bell enjoys “sessioning,” or reworking something over and over until it’s perfect. This applies to both popping a tricky bike jump or redrawing a layer in Photoshop.
“Art has become such a craft for me,” Bell said. “Some of the art that I first created was not very good, but I’m always taking the time to study art and learn about design and understand it more and really sink my teeth into it … And I feel like I definitely take that same approach to biking and skiing.”
Athleticism
Bell is a professional skier and mountain biker, though the sports fulfill her in different ways. In a recent Instagram post, she jokingly described skiing as her “bad boyfriend (inconsiderate, all over the place and unpredictable)” and biking as her “stable partner (easy, consistent and always there).”
Moreover, Bell is an outspoken voice for diversity in outdoor recreation. She said she dealt with her “fair share of tokenism” when breaking into the industry and was commissioned for lifestyle photoshoots before establishing herself as a bona fide athlete. Bell is also no stranger to competition, having raced mountain bikes with Kona Bikes and skied in the Freeride World Tour qualifier — but ultimately, she said she’s more oriented toward “creativity and play.”
When working with athletic brands, Bell said her clients have varying needs — and many want to work with her as an artist, not just an athlete. Some ask her to create content or promote products, whereas others expect her to work in a community engagement capacity.
Bell has partnerships with high-profile brands including Patagonia; the film “Becoming Ruby” tells the story of Bell’s “hand-drawn hero,” Ruby J, whom Bell designed to serve as her own role model. Bell’s other shorts include “Pedal Through,” an REI production about a “week-long bike-packing journey of self-healing and growth.”
Bell is also an ambassador for brands including Faction Ski, Subaru and many more — but most recently, she’s proud of her work with “The Approach.”
“I’m really proud of that project because it’s really pushed me mentally as an athlete,” Bell said. “I’ve had to mature as a person and be able to step up and be a really good team member, too. That has been really challenging, but I think it’s been good for me to navigate.”
Community involvement
Bell said she’s most passionate about projects where she can “incorporate all aspects of who I am and what I stand for.” This includes her collaboration with Rockshox, in which Bell’s designs benefitted the Whatcom Mountain Bike Coalition’s Galbraith South Side parking lot project.
“That was so cool, being able to put art out there … working with so many local brands in town, and being able to give back to this place that has created my career, basically,” Bell said.
No matter where her work whisks her away to, Bell said her roots are firmly tied to Bellingham — and when she considers leaving for good, she inevitably stumbles upon “new nooks and crannies” that open up different doors.
“I definitely do find a strong sense of community here,” Bell said. “I’ve shared so many amazing days in the mountains with the folks here — and I think the community continues to grow and push in the right direction.”
Info: brooklynbelldesign.com.
Cocoa Laney is CDN’s lifestyle editor; reach her at cocoalaney@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 128.
