Creating cosplay costumes and recreating pop culture props is OKC artist's superpower

On any given day, Petra Germany might bear a striking resemblance to a comic-book goddess or a cinematic ice queen. She might take on the likeness of a video game warrior or a television dragon lady.

She might even gender-bend a familiar anti-hero so convincingly it's almost like she's doing it with one arm.

That's her superpower as a multifaceted costume designer and creator of cosplay outfits, props and accessories — and it's one she tries to make attainable for her fellow pop culture enthusiasts, too.

"With it just being so widely accessible, now people are like 'Yeah, I want a Loki crown. Of course. Why not?'" she said. "But I don't ever mind being the only person in costume."

As the 2021-22 Skirvin artist in residence, Germany has spent the past six months working in the downtown Oklahoma City hotel's first-floor studio space, recreating Captain America's shield, The Witcher's wolf medallion, Catwoman's cowl and more.

Before her residency at the historic hotel wraps up at the end of January, visitors might still get a chance to see her decked out as "Frozen" Queen Elsa, "Loki" variant Sylvie or even the female version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's metal-armed assassin the Winter Soldier.

"Halloween week, I just ran around in costume as a different character every single day, like here's Harley Quinn grabbing water from the lobby. 'Whatchu looking at?'" she said with a grin.

"There's a ramp in front of my door, so people walk in, do a little double take when they see the Wonder Woman armor and then kind of lurch across the ramp because they miss a step. It's like, 'What's happening? I need to see what's going on here.'"

Skirvin hotel residency restarts with cosplay artist Petra Germany

Formally known as the Skirvin Paseo Artist Creativity Exposition, 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 chance to witness and even take part 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,” said Paseo Arts Association Executive Director Amanda Bleakley in an email.

Germany is the ninth local artist to participate in the residency. She follows craft jeweler Jennifer Woods, whose time at the 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 the restart of this program. We are thrilled to have her in our space," said Skirvin General Manager Skip Harless in a statement.

Throughout its almost 10-year history, the program has showcased artists working in a wide range of styles and media, including Arsenios Corbishley, a luthier handcrafting stringed instruments; Marissa Raglin, a creator of intricate collages; and Jerry Bennett, a prolific comic book and pop culture artist.

“Petra brings a new dimension on how we perceive art. Cosplay is an activity and performance art (with) which many are unfamiliar, so we are excited for her to teach it to the guests and visitors of the Skirvin," Bleakley told The Oklahoman.

Saturday morning cartoons powered artist's passion

When she first came to the hotel to interview for the residency, Germany said she wore her Elsa gown and wielded her Wonder Woman bow.

"I was like, 'So hey, let's talk about cosplay.' And they really were into it and gave me the chance," Germany said. "The interactions I've had with people here have been just so positive ... and having that validation of cosplay being art — because it is."

Germany's passion for pop culture dates back to her childhood in her native Germany.

"I joke around that I was raised by television, but I was a latchkey kid and I'm an only child. So, I was just always fascinated by all the different forms of entertainment, especially Saturday morning cartoons," she recalled.

In 1999, her family got internet access, just in time for the first of "The Matrix" movies, soon followed by the first live-action "X-Men" film.

"Seeing something that was animated being translated onto real actors, it was like, 'Holy crap, it's Wolverine and he's got claws.' The first time Hugh Jackman flexed his fist and the claws emerged from the trailer, I was like, 'OK, we're in a different ballgame now ... I'm definitely making costumes,'" she said.

She moved to the United States on New Year's Day 2003 and studied costume design at California State University, Los Angeles.

"With miraculous, perfect timing, I graduated pretty much right into the writer's strike and then into the recession of 2008," she said. "I was doing some work on some local productions ... but anything involved with costuming, practical effects, prop artistry just kind of died out, because that was the first part of any production budget that got cut."

Oklahoma provides change of scenery for costumer Petra Germany

Around that time, she also met her husband, Caleb Germany, and they decided they needed a change of scenery. They found it when they visited his family in Oklahoma.

"We all decided, well, this is a good place to be for now — and here it just worked out," said Germany, who moved with her spouse to the Oklahoma City area in 2008.

"Having come from a real creative metropolis like L.A., to find a really thriving art scene and community here ... I didn't expect it."

Since there wasn't much of a film industry in Oklahoma at the time, she shifted her focus from cinematic costume design to independent cosplay artistry. She makes costumed appearances at conventions and events, does custom work and commissions, creates concept art and illustrations and operates an Etsy shop with pop culture-inspired jewelry and accessories.

"At the time, Oklahoma didn't have that expansive of a film industry. Now, we've got (Martin) Scorsese doing stuff ... and Prairie Surf Studios right down the street. So, I think we are getting to that point now, more so than we did in '08," she said.

Artist recreates pop-culture looks

The shelves of Germany's Skirvin studio are crammed with iconic treasures — a blue tesseract cube from the MCU that actually glows, a dragon's egg from "Game of Thrones," a skull bracelet from the TV series "Supernatural" — while detailed costumes from "X-Men," "Suicide Squad" and Disney's "Hercules" are displayed on hangers or mannequins.

"I can make you a set of armor or I can make you a necklace. ... If it exists, and it's feasible, I can probably make it," she said.

"People bring their kids in ... or people come in and I'm like, 'Touch everything. By all means, grab the shield, grab the sword, stage fight in front of the screen. I don't care.' That's part of it: Even if you break it, it's made out of foam and a dowel rod. I can make another one."

One of the entertaining challenges of her job is taking something that has been created for a multimillion-dollar movie or TV series and replicating it in a way that is doable for someone who doesn't have Lucasfilm or Marvel Studios money. She might craft cinematic weaponry out of a PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) foam, 3-D print a superhero's crown or upcycle a thrift store leather coat into a costume from "Assassin's Creed Valhalla."

"I try to be sustainable and I try to be affordable, because I don't want to make it prohibitive for people — or myself," said Germany, who recently appeared at Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center's GameFest as Jade from "Mortal Kombat."

"A lot of cosplayers struggle ... because you're doing the work of an entire costume department on your coffee table in your spare time with your disposable income. ... I'm just trying to make people see that maybe not anyone can do it, but anyone can do something like it."

Lately, she has started posting more tutorials and progress photos to help people get in on the cosplay fun. Through her residency, she has taught various workshops, and during the holidays, she set up two DIY areas in her studio, where visitors can decorate a wand "Harry Potter" style or create a stamped leather cover for a journal.

On Jan. 22, she will play Queen Elsa and help children craft crowns at a "Frozen"-theme high tea at the Skiri

"It's definitely a fun job ... but every new costume I make is a bit of a pain. I want to say it's a bit like giving birth, because creation in itself is always painful," she said. "Everything comes with its own challenge. But the process ultimately is so rewarding that I wouldn't want to do anything else."

'Frozen' High Tea with Petra Germany

When: 1 to 3 p.m. Jan. 22.

Where: Skirvin Hilton Hotel, 1 Park Ave.

Cost: $44.95 for adults and $29.95 children ages 3-10.

Reservations: Required at https://exploretock.com/parkavenuegrill.

TO KNOW MORE

For more information on Petra Germany's cosplay and pop culture art, go to https://www.instagram.com/HallofFemme, https://www.facebook.com/halloffemme or https://www.etsy.com/shop/HallofFemme.

For more on the Skirvin artist residency, go to https://www.thepaseo.org/space.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Meet Petra Germany, the OKC artist bringing cosplay to Skirvin hotel