Jeffrey Brown
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey Brown is a comic book
writer and artist born in Grand Rapids, Michigan
.
, a 25-year-old Jeffrey Brown moved to Chicago
in 2000 to pursue an MFA at the School of the Art Institute. By the time he finished his studies, he had abandoned painting and started drawing comics seriously. His first self-published book, Clumsy, appeared seemingly out of nowhere to grab attention from both cartoonists and comics fans. He specializes in personal and intimate works detailing moments in relationships. He writes and draws his comics in sketchbooks, and his drawing is often out of proportion or incorrect in a way that mirrors that strain and awkwardness of the situations he depicts. He currently lives in Chicago with his wife Jennifer and their son.
Established as a sensitive chronicler of bittersweet adolescent romance and nonsense superhero parody, Brown's current direction remains split between more autobiography examining the minutae of everyday life and whatever humorous fiction he feels in the mood for, and a wide range of fiction subjects in his new series Sulk.
), AEIOU, and Every Girl is the End of the World For Me, comprising the so-called "Girlfriend Trilogy" and its epilogue. More recently his autobiographical work has included Little Things
and the memoir
Funny Misshapen Body. His humorous works include Bighead
(a super-hero parody), I Am Going To Be Small, Cat Getting Out Of A Bag and Incredible Change-Bots.
His work has been featured in MOME
Summer 2005 Vol. 1, as well as Drawn and Quarterly
Showcase, McSweeney's
#13, and The Best American Comics 2007. He was also featured in local newspapers such as the Chicago Reader and NewCity.
Brown's "To Phoenix I'm Sorry I Missed You" was published in the Spring 2008 issue of The Florida Review.
James Kochalka
has called Brown's Clumsy his "favorite graphic novel ever."
Clumsy was originally self-published and was later published by Top Shelf Productions
and as of 2007 an estimated 20,000 copies have been printed, according to an interview with Brown in The Comics Journal
.
for Death Cab for Cutie
's "Your Heart is an Empty Room
".
He has contributed to NPR's This American Life
.
He was featured in the 2009 documentary Drawing Between The Lines by Bruce Parsons.
He illustrated the movie poster for the 2010 feature-length documentary Rabbit Fever
.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
writer and artist born in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
.
Biography
After growing up in Grand Rapids, MichiganMichigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, a 25-year-old Jeffrey Brown moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 2000 to pursue an MFA at the School of the Art Institute. By the time he finished his studies, he had abandoned painting and started drawing comics seriously. His first self-published book, Clumsy, appeared seemingly out of nowhere to grab attention from both cartoonists and comics fans. He specializes in personal and intimate works detailing moments in relationships. He writes and draws his comics in sketchbooks, and his drawing is often out of proportion or incorrect in a way that mirrors that strain and awkwardness of the situations he depicts. He currently lives in Chicago with his wife Jennifer and their son.
Established as a sensitive chronicler of bittersweet adolescent romance and nonsense superhero parody, Brown's current direction remains split between more autobiography examining the minutae of everyday life and whatever humorous fiction he feels in the mood for, and a wide range of fiction subjects in his new series Sulk.
Comic works
Brown's most popular works include Clumsy (the story of a long-distance relationship), Unlikely (the story of how Brown lost his virginityVirginity
Virginity refers to the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. There are cultural and religious traditions which place special value and significance on this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor and worth...
), AEIOU, and Every Girl is the End of the World For Me, comprising the so-called "Girlfriend Trilogy" and its epilogue. More recently his autobiographical work has included Little Things
Little Things
Little Things is an original novel based on the U.S. television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.-Plot summary:Ever since her mother's death, Buffy has been having problems keeping herself and Dawn living together peacefully, and the lack of money is affecting both of them...
and the memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
Funny Misshapen Body. His humorous works include Bighead
Bighead
This article is about the graphic novel, for the insult "bighead", see insult.Bighead is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Jeffrey Brown and published by Top Shelf Productions. The title character is a superhero whose main power seems to be the fact that he has a giant head...
(a super-hero parody), I Am Going To Be Small, Cat Getting Out Of A Bag and Incredible Change-Bots.
His work has been featured in MOME
MOME (Comics)
Mome was a quarterly full-color comics anthology edited by Eric Reynolds , and published by Fantagraphics Books....
Summer 2005 Vol. 1, as well as Drawn and Quarterly
Drawn and Quarterly
Drawn and Quarterly is a Canadian comic book publishing company, headed by Chris Oliveros, and based in Montreal, Quebec. Its focus is on graphic novels and underground or alternative comics. Drawn and Quarterly was also the title of the company's flagship quarterly anthology during the 1990s...
Showcase, McSweeney's
Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern
Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern is a literary journal, first published in 1998, edited by Dave Eggers. The first issue featured only works rejected by other magazines, but thereafter the journal began to include pieces written with McSweeney's in mind. McSweeney’s has since published works by...
#13, and The Best American Comics 2007. He was also featured in local newspapers such as the Chicago Reader and NewCity.
Brown's "To Phoenix I'm Sorry I Missed You" was published in the Spring 2008 issue of The Florida Review.
Critical and commercial reception
He won an Ignatz Award in 2003 in the category of Outstanding Mini-Comic, for I Am Going To Be Small.James Kochalka
James Kochalka
James Kochalka is an American comic book artist and writer, and rock musician. His comics are noted for their blending of the real and the surreal...
has called Brown's Clumsy his "favorite graphic novel ever."
Clumsy was originally self-published and was later published by Top Shelf Productions
Top Shelf Productions
Top Shelf Productions is an American publishing company founded in 1997, owned and operated by Chris Staros and Brett Warnock and a small staff. The company is based in Marietta, Georgia, Portland, Oregon, and New York City, New York....
and as of 2007 an estimated 20,000 copies have been printed, according to an interview with Brown in The Comics Journal
The Comics Journal
The Comics Journal, often abbreviated TCJ, is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels...
.
Other work
Brown directed the animated music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
's "Your Heart is an Empty Room
Directions: The Plans Video Album
Directions: The Plans Video Album is a Grammy-nominated video album from Death Cab for Cutie, corresponding to their major-label debut album Plans. It was released on April 11, 2006 on Atlantic Records/WEA Records...
".
He has contributed to NPR's This American Life
This American Life
This American Life is a weekly hour-long radio program produced by WBEZ and hosted by Ira Glass. It is distributed by Public Radio International on PRI affiliate stations and is also available as a free weekly podcast. Primarily a journalistic non-fiction program, it has also featured essays,...
.
He was featured in the 2009 documentary Drawing Between The Lines by Bruce Parsons.
He illustrated the movie poster for the 2010 feature-length documentary Rabbit Fever
Rabbit Fever (2009 film)
Rabbit Fever is a 2009 feature-length documentary film directed by Amy Do, about the competition at the 2005 National Convention of the American Rabbit Breeders' Association , the largest assemblage of rabbits in the world....
.
Books
- Clumsy (2002)
- Unlikely (2003)
- BigheadBigheadThis article is about the graphic novel, for the insult "bighead", see insult.Bighead is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Jeffrey Brown and published by Top Shelf Productions. The title character is a superhero whose main power seems to be the fact that he has a giant head...
(2004) - Miniature Sulk (2005)
- AEIOU or Any Easy Intimacy (2005)
- Every Girl Is The End Of The World For Me (2006)
- I Am Going To Be Small (2006)
- Cat Getting Out of a Bag (2007)
- Incredible Change-Bots (2007)
- Little Things (2008)
- Sulk Vol. 1 - Bighead and Friends (2008)
- Sulk Vol. 2 - Deadly Awesome (2008)
- Funny Misshapen Body (2009)
- Sulk Vol. 3 - The Kind Of Strength That Comes From Madness (2009)
- Undeleted Scenes (2010)
Significant anthology contributions
- MOMEMOME (Comics)Mome was a quarterly full-color comics anthology edited by Eric Reynolds , and published by Fantagraphics Books....
Vol. 1-6 - Drawn and Quarterly ShowcaseDrawn and QuarterlyDrawn and Quarterly is a Canadian comic book publishing company, headed by Chris Oliveros, and based in Montreal, Quebec. Its focus is on graphic novels and underground or alternative comics. Drawn and Quarterly was also the title of the company's flagship quarterly anthology during the 1990s...
Vol. 2 - Kramers ErgotKramers ErgotKramers Ergot is a series of anthology-style books of comic art edited by Sammy Harkham.-Publication history:Kramers Ergot started as a mini-comic self-published by Sammy Harkham under the imprint Avodah Books...
Vol. 4 - The Escapist Vol. 3
- McSweeney'sMcSweeney'sMcSweeney's is an American publishing house founded by editor Dave Eggers.Apart from its book list, McSweeney's is responsible for four regular publications: the quarterly literary journal,...
#13 - Best American Comics 2007
- Yale Anthology of Graphic FictionYale University PressYale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
Vol. 1-2 - Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror #15
- Strange TalesStrange TalesStrange Tales is the name of several comic book anthology series published by Marvel Comics. It introduced the features "Doctor Strange" and "Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.", and was a showcase for the science fiction/suspense stories of artists Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, and for the...
#3 - Side B from Poseur InkPoseur InkPoseur Ink is a company that was started in 2001 by comic artist Rachel Dukes. Based in San Diego, California the company specializes in independent comics, zines, buttons, and novelty t-shirts....
External links
- Top Shelf Comix - Jeffrey Brown's publisher.
- The Holy Consumption of Chicago - Regularly updated with work by Jeffrey as well as John Hankiewicz, Paul HornschemeierPaul HornschemeierPaul Hornschemeier is a cartoonist based in Chicago, Illinois, known for his thought-provoking explorations of the layered complexities of human life in his work.-Biography:...
and Anders NilsenAnders NilsenAnders Nilsen is a popular artist and graphic novelist who grew up in Minneapolis and lives in Chicago, IL.He works on an ongoing comic series, Big Questions , which has been nominated several times for the Ignatz Award. In addition, his comics have appeared in the anthologies Kramers Ergot and Mome...
. - Crudely Drawn Naked People - A blog attempting to review all of Jeffrey Brown's published work. (On hiatus since September, 2008)
- Hand-written interview with Jeffrey Brown' - A 2-page interview from ifpthendirt.
- Audio Interview at Crown Commission April 2006 interview.
- Radio Interview with The Panel July 2006 interview.
- Between the Lines A short documentary created in 2006 about Jeffrey Brown and his work.
- Interview February 2007 interview on the Around Comics Podcast
- Comic book artist Jeffrey Brown: More than meets the eye November 2007 interview with the New York Daily News.
- Comic artist Jeffrey Brown is back with Little Things April 2008 interview with the New York Daily News. (1) (2)