Zines By Brian Brooks

New release: This Is How I Draw Cats Now is a 32 page paper zine booklet. Each copy is individually packaged within a series of informational barriers.

These books are written and illustrated and designed and laid out by me and printed right down the road at Green Copy, which is a 22 minute walk from my home.

Available for purchase at the Pillowgoat Book Shop. Follow This Is How I Draw Cats Now on Instagram.

Brian & Emily

Artist Emily Wick and I have collaborated on many projects since the mid-2000s. From 2009-2018, we operated Smokey’s Tangle, a gallery and studios on Telegraph Avenue in Oakland, CA. We lend support and help edit each other’s projects. Visit Emily’s website and Instagram page for her latest work.

Emily The Strange

Emily The Strange is a fictional counterculture icon known for her gothic appearance and rebellious attitude. Created by Rob Reger and Cosmic Debris in the mid-1990s, Emily is characterized by her black hair, pale skin, black dress, and her 4 black cats. She has been featured in comics, books, and licensed on various merchandise across the world.

Cosmic Debris is the company behind Emily The Strange, founded as a t-shirt screen printing business in the early 1990s. Cosmic Debris develops and manages all aspects of Emily The Strange, including merchandise, media, and branding. The company is owned and run by Rob Reger and a small team of artists and freaks.

My History of Employment at Cosmic Debris:
Writer (1999-2006)
Illustrator, Designer (1999-2006)
Art Director (2003-2006)
Designer, Animator (2019-2023)

Visit the Emily The Strange Official Site and follow on Instagram.

Oopsy Daisy

I created Oopsy Daisy in 1999 in partnership with Cosmic Debris, and it quickly became a successful t-shirt and stationery line and international licensed character. The brand became inactive in 2006 and was revived in 2018. The Oopsy Daisy universe includes GoraX, Princess Pretty, and Sidney Punk. Visit their Instagram pages and the Oopsy Shop for the latest offerings.

Instagram Pages

Oopsy Daisy
GoraX
Princess Pretty
Sidney Punk

Local Artist

What started as an activity to get off the computer in the early evenings, turned into a multitude of demented documenting projects based on my immediate neighborhood that I have lived in for 25 years. My neighborhood projects began innocently enough through plein air paintings documenting the changing neighborhood (2014-2020), and later took a turn into the unknown through road construction documentation (2021-2022), and mapping and surveying (2020-2022), and is now settled on what I call Temescal Now, a booklet documenting local businesses (2022-2024). Parts of these projects have been published as zines, brochures, and videos.

Temescal Now

Visit the main drag of Oakland’s Temescal Neighborhood with my meticulously illustrated guidebook Temescal Now. Explore detailed maps and iconic business logos along Telegraph Avenue, captured by a 25 year resident of the neighborhood. Perfectly pocket-sized and discreet, this guidebook is a must-have for local residents and visitors alike. Available at the Pillowgoat Book Shop. Stay tuned for an expanded 2024 update.

Middle Of The Road Drawings By Brian Brooks

Middle Of The Road Drawings is a series of time-lapse videos documenting my work documenting the traffic islands being installed along Telegraph Avenue, in my neighborhood. These fast-paced videos were recorded with just a tripod and myself and a clipboard and index cards and ballpoint pens. In addition to drawing the drawings, the videos were filmed and edited in a single evening, with soundtracks, sound effects, and graphics added as well.

Bust Stop Build Out Construction Drawing With Brian Brooks

Bus Stop Build-Out Construction Drawings are a series of time-lapse videos documenting my work documenting two bus stop build-outs being installed in my neighborhood. These fast-paced videos were recorded with just a tripod and me, trusting that no one would steal my equipment as I ventured sometimes a block away, and looking like a fool in every way. The videos were filmed and edited in a single evening, with soundtracks, sound effects, and graphics added the same day.

Hooper’s Loopers

Hooper’s Loopers is a series of silent improve time-lapse videos I developed in 2018-2019. Each video begins and ends with the artist facing a door alongside the back lot of Hooper’s Chocolates, a vacant chocolate factory.