HOW I GOT HERE The amazing career journey of Joanne Brooks

Joanne Brooks, senior silicone technician at The London Prosthetic Centre, explains her unusual career

Joanne Brooks has always been artistic. So much so, in fact, that her dad tells her she drew her first recognisable face when she was just a year old. Joanne always knew she wanted to harness that creativity and passion – she just wasn’t sure how. Then, she found prosthetics, and now she makes custom silicone covers for amputees that match their skin tone exactly.

SCULPTURE WAS MY FIRST LOVE.

I completed a three-year degree in model making at Arts University Bournemouth, where I learned about the whole spectrum of sculpture, including product models, film props, animatronics and architectural models.

I DIDN’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE WORLD OF MEDICAL PROSTHETICS.

My initial idea was to go into the film industry, but after I graduated, I was chatting to a friend who worked at Dorset Orthopaedic [one of a few private prosthetic and orthotic companies in the UK] and she said they were recruiting. I had no knowledge of the industry, but was told training would be provided, so I applied for a junior position – and I got the job.

I MADE MY FIRST PROSTHETIC LIMB COVER IN 2007.

It was a foot, and while it wasn’t the best-looking product, I remember feeling so proud. In 2012, I moved to my current role at The London Prosthetic Centre, and I am now a senior silicone technician, which means I manage trainees, as well as making limbs myself.

IT’S A COMPLEX PROCESS, AND IT TAKES A LOT OF PRACTICE TO MASTER.

The prosthetist takes measurements from an amputee and works alongside workshop technicians to create the inner workings of the prosthetic limb. Then it’s my team’s job to craft the cover using silicone to make it look as realistic as possible.

SILICONE TECHNICIANS HAVE NO MEDICAL BACKGROUND.

It often surprises people to learn that we are artists, not doctors. Our job involves making a plaster copy of a limb, before using a camera on the client’s skin and nails to work out the different skin tone shades of silicone we need. We input those into a computer to create a swatch of colours, and we take photos of the client’s remaining foot or arm, or find the closest possible match, to ensure maximum accuracy.

THE THING I LOVE MOST IS USING MY CREATIVITY.

We paint on freckles, hair follicles and veins – and we raise the veins by carefully pinching the silicone. We add moles using darker silicone, and human hair extensions on male arms. For women who want long, French-manicured fingernails on their prosthetic hands, we use acrylic.

‘THE THING I LOVE MOST IS USING MY CREATIVITY’

WE CAN EVEN CREATE TATTOOS.

One lady asked me to draw a horse tattoo on to the side of her prosthetic leg, which I loved. There’s scope for making some wacky and wonderful display limbs, too – I’ve created an arm with plant tendrils wrapped around it and tiny bugs and butterflies, and a blue waterproof leg covered in jellyfish, dolphins and a huge octopus.

EVERY DAY IS DIFFERENT.

I could be colour mixing, preparing silicone, spending a whole day in the plaster room or painting on finishing touches. I tend to have two or three jobs on the go at once, and I overlap them. While one plaster mould is drying in the oven, for instance, I’ll start prepping a colour swatch for the next.

MY JOB ALLOWS ME TO GIVE BACK.

When someone puts on a limb I’ve designed for the first time, it’s brilliant to see the smile that crosses their face. The knowledge that what I do helps people and enhances their lives is incredibly important to me.