Meet Samantha Brooks | Artist & Astrologer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Samantha Brooks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Samantha, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I’ve been called things like ‘reckless’ and ‘careless’ because I’m not afraid of taking risks. Even if I fail, I’m more comfortable saying ‘I tried’ than knowing I kept myself stagnant out of fear. Whether it’s leaving a job or leaving a relationship, this perspective is a major contributing factor to my personal and professional success.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve always been interested in human complexity. Ever since I was in college, the things we keep to ourselves and the things we choose to disclose in different circumstances and the grey area between public and private has informed my work. It hasn’t been easy – it’s been very humbling. I’ve had to and I still sit with really dark parts of myself, because I don’t believe it’d be right for me to ask people to reveal parts of themselves I haven’t explored in myself. I’ve learned that forgiving yourself is key because the work is never done and every day presents an opportunity to do better. Honestly, astrology helped me navigate my darkest times. I allowed myself to grieve and then I took my own advice – I stopped looking outside and I looked within. I learned myself, held myself accountable, and I took advantage of the opportunities life gave me to invest in my own happiness.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
There is this Ethiopian restaurant in West Palm Beach called Queen of Sheeba that I love. It’s quiet and intimate and the food is authentic, delicious, and healthy. There are so many great art museums in South Florida – I would want to go to them all, but I especially love the Norton Museum and the Rubell private collection. We’d also have to go snorkeling at the coral reef in John D Macarthur Park.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Themes of action and accountability are integral to my work. It’s not enough to believe we are good people – we have to actually sit with our actions and determine whether the way we move in the world aligns with how we see ourselves. It’s easy to make excuses for misdeeds as “mistakes” so we don’t have to do anything to rectify them. With that said, while my mom has supported me my whole life, I want to dedicate my shoutout to my dad because even though in the past he wasn’t as present as he’d like to have been, he recently came through for me and my mom in a really major way. I think it’s really admirable when people are willing to admit when they haven’t been good people and actually do something about it.

Website: http://astral-theory.com