Being a girl in this world can be tough. Sometimes it is nice to let your alter ego take over. This is what Libby Schoettle did, and now Phoebe New York is literally seen all over the New York streets! To learn more about this amazing and fun artist, please read Jejune’s exclusive interview below.

How did you get into street art?
No artist can predict how their art will be received, and it certainly never crossed my mind that my art would be seen by people walking past it on their city walks, finding it on poles, doors and walls. My start in street art was very unexpected. I didn’t know anything about street art or graffiti until I began this journey, a journey that has happily changed my entire direction as a woman and as an artist. And yet you can’t question what feels right; from the first time I put Phoebe on the street, I never looked back.

Do you have a favorite place to put your art?
Anywhere within walking distance! I am not a big traveler (as in trains or airplanes), but I will walk for miles to put my art up in New York City.

You have a very cool style. Can you tell us a bit about what attracts you to collages and why you choose what you include in them?
Thank you! I am attracted to anything that I am attracted to, if that makes sense! Once, I found an old refrigerator door on the side of the road and dragged it into my seven-story walk up apartment because I was sure I could make something with it, and I did! I always trust my instincts in terms of what I use for my art, what I include in my art, and even what I photograph. I am attracted to things that remind me of the past, things that feel timeless. Quite often my collages contain elements from several different time periods, and I feel it is that combination of “time” that makes my work come alive. A skirt from 1950 and a top from 1980 and hair from 1920 can become the future.

Phoebe New York is your alter ego. Can you tell us a bit about her and how she came to be?
I’m literary-minded and, right after 9/11, I realized I needed to write about my life - in essence to save my life. Like many New Yorkers at the time, I was going through difficult issues. I began writing in the the first person, and I chose the name of Holden Caulfield’s sister in Catcher in the Rye, Phoebe. I always wondered what happened to that Phoebe, so Phoebe is who I became, and she is who (or what) finally freed me to become me (my authentic self). I write about Phoebe and create her, as you know, in my visual art. Phoebe allows me to express what I can’t in real life and, in a sense, she’s become a language I rely on to represent myself.

She seems to be a bit of a rebel feminist, but also very sensitive and feminine. Do you feel this is a contradiction or do you feel people just view women too black and white?
Phoebe is not alone. I believe there are many sensitive rebellious women out there, although we don’t always get to see the different aspects of all of their personalities the way we can see various sides of Phoebe. In my case, I think that Phoebe is a sensitive rebel because of how I grew up. I was very shy and constantly bullied, and was too afraid and ashamed to stand up for myself. I knew I had a voice, but I couldn’t find it at that time. I’ve always been sensitive, but when I found art, it was like I found my (rebellious) voice.

What inspires your messages that you put out there with her?
How I create my art is dictated by how I’m feeling at the time. Years ago, during a rather depressed period, I made Phoebe entirely blue: blue face, blue body, and blue words. Her sad messages weren’t making her/me (us) happy. More recently, I understand how to navigate my artistic impulses to find messages that inspire, and I can see the difference in how I feel by doing that. Now, I have the ability to control my art, rather than it controlling me.

I am always looking for words that make my days feel like they have meaning and, in turn, that meaning gets communicated to others through the art I make from those words. That’s what makes me feel like I have true meaning: a real purpose. I have one piece that says, “something good is worth finding.” Messages from my art become even more relevant once they’re out on the street, because people can pass them in moments when they need to see those words, which I hope makes the occurrence feel like a sort of magical experience.

You often choose to use fashion model bodies, but a big adorable more cartoonish head. Why this juxtaposition?
Scale has always been interesting to me, as perception of my own scale is often distorted. I see myself much bigger at times, and at times much smaller. Sometimes I make collages with Phoebe’s body very small while making her head very big, and sometimes I create collages with her body very big and then make her head much bigger. Phoebe is comfortable with who she is, and she wants to stand out—she is a woman who demands to be seen (in her own way), and yet she is a bit of a misfit as well.

Phoebe is a fantasy for me, and by using a larger-than-life head I get to create a doll-like experience, and yet tell my story at the same time. Her head does keep getting bigger by the way, which could, at this point, be ego.

I actually found your art on the street and was really excited to see something feminist and from a female artist! I feel like I never see this. Why do you think this is?
I believe Phoebe stands out because she enjoys being feminine and fashionable, but also making strong statements.

Seeing a female character on the street (and all over the street) is unusual because not many artists do what I do. Not everyone wants to see their art on the street, but I do. Also, I’ve been told Phoebe is recognizable, like an actual person, which can make her straightforward, accessible and relatable to almost everyone. Phoebe is really about the heart.

Female street artists are not very common. How has that influenced you and your art?
I don’t consider or compare myself to what others are doing. I make art based on my current state of mind, and I tend to do that with blinders on. Phoebe is on the street because it is where she can be seen and communicate with others. I appreciate that it’s difficult to be a street artist, and a female street artist has to be brave.

Do you feel there are more female street artist these days?
I think there are quite a few female artists working on the street right now. I don’t focus on whether the artist is female vs male. If it’s good art, and they’re prolific, and their art moves me, then that’s a good artist in my opinion.

How do you know where and what you want to put up?
(libby don’t give away all your trade craft secrets here!)

With regard to places, for the most part I don’t like to plan, I just like to go. I simply start walking and the places find me. Regarding the work, I like to paste pieces that have true meaning in their messages. Street art is about self-motivation: if you want it, then you have to go after it, and you have to keep going after it because eventually it’s going to disappear if you don’t keep up.

Do you have any fun stories from putting up art on the street?
One great memory is of the time Chloe Sevigny, one of my favorite actresses, stopped me while I was pasting a wall and told me how much she loves my art. It was a magical moment.