On any given day, Petra Germany might bear a striking resemblance to a comic book goddess or a movie ice queen. She could take on the appearance of a video game warrior or a TV dragon lady.
He could even gender-bend a familiar antihero so convincingly it’s almost like he’s doing it with one arm.
That’s her superpower as a multi-faceted costume designer and creator of cosplay outfits, props and props, and it’s something she tries to make accessible to her fellow pop culture enthusiasts as well.
“Being so accessible, now people are like, ‘Yeah, I want a Loki crown. Of course. Why not?'” he said. “But I never mind being the only person in costume.”
As Skirvin’s 2021-22 artist-in-residence, Germany has spent the past six months working in the downtown Oklahoma City hotel’s first-floor studio, recreating Captain America’s shield, The Witcher’s wolf medallion, the cowl from Catwoman and more.
Before her residency at the historic hotel ends in late January, visitors might still get a chance to see her dressed as Queen Elsa from “Frozen,” the “Loki” variant Sylvie, or even the female version from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. . armed assassin the Winter Soldier.
“Halloween week, I was just running around dressed as a different character every day, like here’s Harley Quinn drawing water from the lobby. ‘What are you looking at?'” she said with a laugh.
“There’s a ramp in front of my door, so people walk in, look twice when they see Wonder Woman’s armor, and then stumble across the ramp because she misses a step. It’s like, ‘What’s going on? I need to see. What’s going on here'”.
Skirvin Hotel Residency Restarts With Cosplay Artist Petra Germany
Formally known as the Skirvin Paseo Artists Creativity Exhibition, or SPACE, the residency is a partnership between the hotel and the Paseo Arts Association. The Skirvin provides the space where selected artists can do their work, while giving hotel guests and visitors the opportunity to witness and even participate in the creative process.
“This is a partnership that began in 2012 and continues to be highly sought after and was the first of its kind in the state of Oklahoma,” Paseo Arts Association Executive Director Amanda Bleakley said in an email.
Germany is the ninth local artist to participate in the residency. She follows artisan jeweler Jennifer Woods, whose time at Skirvin was cut short during the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak.
“It was immediately apparent that Petra’s energy and fresh approach to engaging others with her unique art was perfect for this show’s reboot. We are thrilled to have her in our space,” Skirvin General Manager Skip Harless said in a statement.
Throughout its nearly 10-year history, the show has featured artists working in a wide range of styles and mediums, including Arsenios Corbishley, a luthier who crafts stringed instruments by hand; Marissa Raglin, creator of intricate collages; and Jerry Bennett, a prolific comic book and pop culture artist.
“Petra brings a new dimension to how we perceive art. Cosplay is an activity and performance art that many are unfamiliar with, so we’re excited for her to teach it to guests and visitors to Skirvin,” Bleakley told The Oklahoman.
Saturday morning cartoons fueled the artist’s passion
When she first arrived at the hotel for a residency interview, Germany said she was wearing her Elsa dress and clutching her Wonder Woman bow.
“I was like, ‘Hey, let’s talk about cosplay.’ And they really liked it and gave me a chance,” Germany said. “The interactions I’ve had with people here have been so positive…and having that validation that cosplay is art, because it is.”
Germany’s passion for pop culture dates back to his childhood in his native Germany.
“I joke that I was raised by television, but I was a little girl and I’m an only child. So I was always fascinated by all the different forms of entertainment, especially Saturday morning cartoons,” she recalled.
In 1999, his family gained access to the Internet, just in time for the first of “The Matrix” movies, soon to be followed by the first live-action “X-Men” movie.
“Seeing something that was animated being translated into live action, it was like, ‘Shit, it’s Wolverine and he’s got claws.’ The first time Hugh Jackman flexed his fist and the claws came out of the trailer, I was like, ‘OK, we’re in a different ball game now… I’m definitely doing costumes,'” he said.
She moved to the United States on New Year’s Day 2003 and studied costume design at California State University, Los Angeles.
“With perfect and miraculous timing, I graduated almost straight into the writers’ strike and then into the 2008 recession,” he said. “I was working on some local productions… but everything about the costumes, the practical effects, the prop art just died out, because that was the first part of any production budget that was cut.”
Oklahoma provides a change of scenery for client Petra Germany
Around this time, she also met her husband, Caleb Germany, and they decided they needed a change of scenery. They found it when they visited her family in Oklahoma.
“We all decided, well, this is a good place to be for now, and here it just worked,” said Germany, who moved with her spouse to the Oklahoma City area in 2008.
“Having come from a really creative metropolis like Los Angeles, to find a really thriving arts scene and community here…I wasn’t expecting it.”
Since there was not much of a film industry in Oklahoma at the time, he shifted his focus from film costume design to independent cosplay art. She makes costumed appearances at conventions and events, does commissions and custom work, creates concept art and illustrations, and operates an Etsy shop with pop culture-inspired jewelry and accessories.
“At the time, Oklahoma didn’t have such an expansive movie industry. Now, we have (Martin) Scorsese doing stuff…and Prairie Surf Studios down the street. So I think we’re getting there.” point now, more than in 2008,” he said.
Artist recreates looks from pop culture
The shelves of Germany’s Skirvin studio are packed with iconic treasures: a blue tesseract cube from the MCU that really glows, a dragon egg from “Game of Thrones,” a skull bracelet from the TV series “Supernatural,” while that detailed costumes from Disney’s “X-Men,” “Suicide Squad,” and “Hercules” are displayed on hangers or mannequins.
“I can make you armor or I can make you a necklace… If it exists, and it’s feasible, I can probably do it,” he said.
“People bring their kids… or people come in and I say, ‘Touch everything. By all means, grab the shield, grab the sword, fight in front of the screen. I do not mind’. That’s part of it: even if you break it, it’s made of foam and a rod. I can make another.”
One of the fun challenges of his job is taking something that’s been created for a multi-million dollar movie or TV series and replicating it in a way that’s feasible for someone who doesn’t have money from Lucasfilm or Marvel Studios. He could make movie weapons out of PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) foam, 3D print a superhero’s crown, or recycle a thrift store leather coat into an “Assassin’s Creed Valhalla” costume.
“I try to be sustainable and affordable, because I don’t want it to be prohibitively expensive for people, or for me,” said Germany, who recently appeared at the Oklahoma Center for Contemporary Arts’ GameFest as Jade from “Mortal Kombat.”
“A lot of cosplayers struggle…because you’re doing the work of an entire costume department at your coffee table in your spare time with your disposable income…I’m just trying to get people to see that maybe not everyone can do it.” , but anyone can do something like that.”
Lately, she has started posting more tutorials and progress photos to help people have fun cosplaying. Through her residency, she has taught various workshops and over the holidays she has set up two DIY areas in her studio, where visitors can decorate a “Harry Potter” style wand or create a patterned leather cover for a diary.
On January 22, she will play Queen Elsa and help children make crowns at a “Frozen”-themed tea in Skiri.
“It’s definitely a fun job… but every new costume I make is a little bit painful. I mean it’s a bit like giving birth, because the creation itself is always painful,” she said. “Everything comes with its own challenge. But ultimately the process is so rewarding that I wouldn’t want to do anything else.”
Frozen Tea with Petra Germany
When: 1 to 3 pm January 22.
Where: Skirvin Hilton Hotel, 1 Park Ave.
Cost: $44.95 for adults and $29.95 for children ages 3-10.
Reservations: required at https://exploretock.com/parkavenuegrill.
TO KNOW MORE
To learn more about Petra Germany’s cosplay and pop culture art, visit https://www.instagram.com/HallofFemme, https://www.facebook.com/halloffemme or https://www.etsy .com/shop/ HallofFemme.
For more information on the Skirvin artist residency, visit https://www.thepaseo.org/space.