Sam Brown (artist)
Encyclopedia
Sam Brown, pseudonym of Adam Culbert, is an American
illustrator
and author
most noted for his website
, explodingdog
. The gimmick
of the site is that he draws pictures based on titles that visitors to the site send him via email
or twitter
. He has also written two books of art and short stories
, Wish For Something Better and Amazing Rain
, based on the art of his website.
Most of Sam Brown's art is created in Adobe Photoshop
on a Wacom
tablet
, although recently he has begun doing some drawings on paper. The fact that the art is produced on a computer is not readily apparent from viewing; other than occasional digital filter
s and transparency
effects, the majority of the work is solid color-filled
line drawings.
A number of themes are recurrent in Sam Brown's art, likely the types of things he most enjoys drawing; these include dog
s, fish
, bird
s, robot
s, alien
visitors, evil
(portrayed as a green liquid), cloud
s, dictator
s and rocket
s, although he will never draw monkeys. His people have a distinctive appearance, their faces a plain circle with a line drawn across the middle for the mouth and two scribbled circles for eyes. The people engage in a number of abnormal activities such as stabbing or dismembering each other, hooking themselves up to strange machine
s, and flying
.
Currently, , Sam Brown is a member of the Dumbrella
comic collective.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
and author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
most noted for his website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
, explodingdog
Explodingdog
explodingdog is the name of an internet web site run by Sam Brown, pseudonym of Adam Culbert. Viewers of the site e-mail Brown short phrases for inspiration and he picks certain ones to illustrate...
. The gimmick
Gimmick
In marketing language, a gimmick is a unique or quirky special feature that makes something "stand out" from its contemporaries. However, the special feature is typically thought to be of little relevance or use. Thus, a gimmick is a special feature for the sake of having a special feature...
of the site is that he draws pictures based on titles that visitors to the site send him via email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
or twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
. He has also written two books of art and short stories
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
, Wish For Something Better and Amazing Rain
Amazing Rain
Amazing Rain is an illustrated novel by artist Sam Brown. Published in November, 2004, it contains all new artwork, which nonetheless appears to be based on the artwork of his website, .-Plot summary:...
, based on the art of his website.
Most of Sam Brown's art is created in Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Photoshop is a graphics editing program developed and published by Adobe Systems Incorporated.Adobe's 2003 "Creative Suite" rebranding led to Adobe Photoshop 8's renaming to Adobe Photoshop CS. Thus, Adobe Photoshop CS5 is the 12th major release of Adobe Photoshop...
on a Wacom
Wacom
in Krefeld, Germany. Wacom is a Japanese portmanteau: Wa for "harmony" or "circle", and Komu for "computer". Wacom tablets are notable for their use of a patented cordless, battery-free, and pressure-sensitive stylus or digital pen...
tablet
Graphics tablet
A graphics tablet is a computer input device that enables a user to hand-draw images and graphics, similar to the way a person draws images with a pencil and paper. These tablets may also be used to capture data or handwritten signatures...
, although recently he has begun doing some drawings on paper. The fact that the art is produced on a computer is not readily apparent from viewing; other than occasional digital filter
Digital filter
In electronics, computer science and mathematics, a digital filter is a system that performs mathematical operations on a sampled, discrete-time signal to reduce or enhance certain aspects of that signal. This is in contrast to the other major type of electronic filter, the analog filter, which is...
s and transparency
Transparency (graphic)
Transparency is possible in a number of graphics file formats. The term transparency is used in various ways by different people, but at its simplest there is "full transparency" i.e. something that is completely invisible. Of course, only part of a graphic should be fully transparent, or there...
effects, the majority of the work is solid color-filled
Flood fill
Flood fill, also called seed fill, is an algorithm that determines the area connected to a given node in a multi-dimensional array. It is used in the "bucket" fill tool of paint programs to determine which parts of a bitmap to fill with color, and in games such as Go and Minesweeper for determining...
line drawings.
A number of themes are recurrent in Sam Brown's art, likely the types of things he most enjoys drawing; these include dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
s, fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
, bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s, alien
Extraterrestrial life
Extraterrestrial life is defined as life that does not originate from Earth...
visitors, evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
(portrayed as a green liquid), cloud
Cloud
A cloud is a visible mass of liquid droplets or frozen crystals made of water and/or various chemicals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of a planetary body. They are also known as aerosols. Clouds in Earth's atmosphere are studied in the cloud physics branch of meteorology...
s, dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
s and rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
s, although he will never draw monkeys. His people have a distinctive appearance, their faces a plain circle with a line drawn across the middle for the mouth and two scribbled circles for eyes. The people engage in a number of abnormal activities such as stabbing or dismembering each other, hooking themselves up to strange machine
Machine
A machine manages power to accomplish a task, examples include, a mechanical system, a computing system, an electronic system, and a molecular machine. In common usage, the meaning is that of a device having parts that perform or assist in performing any type of work...
s, and flying
Flight
Flight is the process by which an object moves either through an atmosphere or beyond it by generating lift or propulsive thrust, or aerostatically using buoyancy, or by simple ballistic movement....
.
Currently, , Sam Brown is a member of the Dumbrella
Dumbrella
Dumbrella is an alliance of webcomic artists who promote one another's sites, travel to conventions, and sell merchandise together. It is also the name of the website of that alliance, which serves as a shared weblog and an active forum community with over 10,000 registered users .The current...
comic collective.
External links
In the news
- July 2001 Interview with The Morning NewsThe Morning News (online magazine)The Morning News is a U.S.-based daily online magazine founded in 1999 by Rosecrans Baldwin and Andrew Womack. It began as an email newsletter and in the fall of 2000 evolved into a news-oriented weblog with a New York focus...
- Three Imaginary Girls, July 2004
- gel talk, May 2003
- Austin Chronicle, March 2005
- Bostonist, July 2006
- NY Times, April 2003
- Wired, Nov 2000
- Fairfield County Weekly July 21, 2005