Bizarre Magazine Issue #181 : Dark Art Interview with Bob Self

Presenting one of my first interviews! 

This little number was in conjunction with Mr. Bob Self -a man of many talents and tastes. He's not only the president and publisher of Baby Tattoo Books, he's a fantastic writer and occasional organizer of the ever-so-popular Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School events in and around California.

I was pretty honored to be chosen for one of Bob's final "Dark Art" interviews, appearing in the UK's most popular fetish periodical Bizarre Magazine -issue #181 back in 2011. It was a lot of fun working with him, and I got to show a side of myself that people don't normally see on a regular basis.

So here's the interview, transcribed by yours truly, in its entirety.

Please enjoy!

ALL BRANNOCK

 

Get some arty fibre inside ya and keep your mind irregular – 

enjoy a bowlful of Katherine Brannock’s 

ballpoint drawings of animal-headed girls 

Sometimes dark art appears in the most brightly-lit places. In the case of Katherine Brannock’s work, one of her big-titted, jumpsuit-clad, gun-toting, crow-headed (but not bird-brained) drawings found its way to me under the glaring fluorescent lights of the “Nerd Prom”, officially known as San Diego Comic-Con. Out of 130,000 convention-goers, Brannock’s beaked babe made the most lasting impression on me, even though she only exists as wank-worthy ink on paper.

 

MYSTERIOUS GIRL

The creatures in Brannock’s drawings are enigmatic, but the artist is even more so. I didn’t see Brannock at the Con, so I chatted with her via email, and learned that it’s hard (perhaps impossible) to get a straight answer from her. For example, when I asked if she was popular at school, Brannock said: “I could always draw as many friends as I needed at any given moment, so according to my records, I was the most popular girl in the multiverse.” And when asked if her paintings are self-portraits, she said: “Only the images that are vacantly opinionated, with a dash of complacent pretentiousness.”

Some of the personal revelations she makes (or doesn’t) aren’t just double-talk, they’re infinite-loop-talk. Her favorite animal? “Animal magnetism.” Her least favorite animal? “Animal instincts.” Does she like to dress up in zoomorphic costumes? “If I had the money, most of my time might be spent elaborately camouflaging myself, in which case you wouldn’t have been able to find me or my artwork.”

Hmph. Maybe Brannock doesn’t really exist. Her CV states that she worked as a graphic designer for the US Marine Corps, but her evasiveness suggests she might just be a phantom created by the American military for some sort of covert purpose. When I ask how her gig with the soldiers affected her personal artworks, she’s a little more direct for once, stating ominously, “They intimidated it, then harassed it, and eventually broke its spirit.” I don’t think I agree; her current work looks pretty kick-ass to me.

 

BLACK SHEEP

 

The only piece of information Brannock shares with me that appears to be true is that she attended a Catholic school in San Diego nicknamed “The Barfing Lamb”. “There was a statue on the school’s front lawn depicting Jesus and some sheep, but one of the lambs was supported by a piece of white plaster that ran from its mouth to the ground,” she explains. “From across the street, it looked like the lamb was vomiting.”

I thought I might make a trip to San Diego to confirm this story, and discover whether I’d achieved the impossible task of extracting a fact from Brannock about herself… but alas, the artist informed me that the site has been paved over to create a car park. That’s how Brannock rolls: she’s all mystery, myth, and witty diversions.

One thing I do know is that she gets through a lot of BiC ballpoint pens while creating her illustrations. How am I so sure? A little, big-titted birdie told me.

Thank you Bob!
And thanks for checking in, 
take care until next time...

xoxo