Customer Reviews

Dumb Luck: The Art of Gary Baseman

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You gotta love Gary Baseman. His stuff is just so damn much fun that it's really no wonder he can parlay it into such diverse projects as Disney films and Starbucks board games. The surprising thing is that I can still look at it after all that - but "Teacher's Pet" IS exceptional for the schlock-factory that is Disney, even though it represents a somewhat cleaned-up version of Baseman's style. But if you prefer the Baseman of Blab! and Juxtapoz, the gritty oil renderings of his bug-eyed psycho cartoon world, here you go. You've got your naked chicks, your "dorks," your devils and skeletons, often in pinata form, often clubbing each other to death or otherwise violently expressing their angst and ennui. Spare yourself the really laughably pretentious forward by Barry Smolin, by the way: "Baseman's multivalent imagination conceives a panoply of diverse characters..." Please give me a break. "Sometimes a nose is just a nose," meaning that sometimes it's obviously a phallus; but we don't really need to invoke Freud to analyze the mysteries of Baseman's work - it's simply not that deep. It's "Dumb Luck." Let's not suck all the fun out of it!

Finally got my hands on this bad boy, and just have to say, Wow. This book is big (in every sense of the word), jam packed with pictures of Baseman's art and designed incredibly well. Coffee table books watch out, there's a new kid on the block.
Paging through this massive tome you become fully immersed in Baseman's World; a world full of amputee Bunnies, drooling ice cream cones, masochistic snowmen, doggie Dunces, feline pinatas, plus unattainable beauty and human desire. Though many aspects of Baseman's career are on display (advertising, animation, editorial, packaging and product art), it is his paintings that truly shine. This is where Baseman can let go, and let go he does with a torrent of cute and fuzzy creatures mired in the most horribly painful human experiences. The humor is oftentimes juvenile and sadistic, but somehow it manages to engender a smile from the viewer, maybe because we're glad it's the Snowman who is getting his heart broken (by a mermaid no-less) and not us. There is something else, that elusive "indefinable" quality, that gives Baseman's work it's mass(ive) appeal. His characterizations harken back to old Warner Bros. cartoons (who hasn't grown up on those?), which tickle the child inside, but the emotions and situations are purely human, which grabs the attention of our grown-up self. Baseman's greatest trick, however, is creating what appear to be very simple paintings. As with most great art repeated viewings are required to be able to peel back all the layers, and really see what's going on. And believe me, there is a lot going on.
I doubt that many people unfamiliar with Baseman's work would get this book, but anyone who has been exposed (a very appropriate term actually) to his paintings, magazine/book covers or toys should jump on it. Highest rating possible from me.

Gary Baseman is a very successful illustrator and everyone who reads magazines will recognize his unique style and recognizable imagery. He uses cartoon characters to populate his paintings and these figures are usually involved in some devious and chaotic activities that are full of dark humor. He has limited his palette to the three primary colors of red, blue, and yellow along with white and black. Green, orange, purple, gray, and the earth tones rarely are used - though you will find some pink used for flesh tones. The imagery of cartoon characters involved in some acts of menace, cruelty, absurdity, and chaos constitutes the majority of the subject matter of his work. He has created a self-contained reality where little emerges from outside to divert the central themes he conveys. When he does use something from beyond his own imagery, such as newspaper clippings or magazine photographs, he manipulates the image to integrate it into his visual vocabulary. For the majority of the work, the visual field is not deep and classical perspective is not used. This is because cartoon images do not covey to the viewer that they live in a completely realized reality but are a self contained statement. His brushstroke and painting style is direct and resembles the painting style of the naive and primitive non-academic painters. There is just enough shading and color variation to make his point with no need to create lush and beautiful surfaces. Baseman uses popular imagery; images used to amuse children, and have these images doing very absurd adult nonsense. The book contains a short essay by Barry Smolin which links Baseman's work to his early influences of Warner Brother's cartoon characters, MAD magazine, and the Marx Brothers. Smolin also identifies the three primary images in Baseman's work, the dorky everyman with oversized nose, the devil, and the unattainable female. The nose is very phallic. There is also a short artist's statement from Baseman where he identifies humor and desire as primary themes in his work. To rise in the world of illustrators, an artist must develop a recognizable style that has a broad enough vocabulary and possibilities that it can address the needs of a broad range of customers. Baseman has accomplished this. This book is full of over 200 of his paintings, all reproduced in color, that disturbingly entertain.

There's something about this guy I really love. His art appears simple at first, but after awhile it can get as complex as I want to imagine it to be. It's funny too. Large book and very well printed and bound. Just an all around great art book, nice on the coffee table too.

I got this book thinking it would be a dinky book with few pics of Gary's work, I was highly surprised when I received it today. It's a thick heavy duty chunky book, filled massively with brightly colored photos of his work, with a combination of black and white photos. A perfect combination. Gary is one of my all time favorite "low brow" comic artists. I fancy Keith Haring, but something about the cheesiness of Gary's work appeals to me. Not only that, but it reminds me of my own kooky poptoon paintings. Many people say that my work is like him... and it's odd that now seeing more detailed examples of his work, I can see the close resemblance in some characters. Definitely check out Gary's work when you get the chance! This book is awesome.

Seemingly simple forms hide complex thoughts. This book is like the height chart marked on the kitchen door frame measuring progress. Gary displays a variety of themes that have characterized his work over the past decade. Some will be drawn to the images reflecting his work on "Teacher's Pet" the emmy-winning ABC Saturday morning show that saw its last incarnation as a full-out animation feature film. Others will see his work as some Freudian-Jungian self examination of our hidden natures (that we try not to put on display for everyone). Even others will see his work as an alternative iconography to sleek Madison Avenue campaigns. This book is all of this and serves as a wonderful summation of Gary's work to date. The fact that Gary's images were used for the "Cranium" game is no fluke -- there is a high correlation between the type of individual who enjoys the mind game and the one who appreciates Gary's art. Sardonic humor never seems to go out style -- so, too, Gary's own expression of that humor will wear well. Do your brain a favor and get this book.

I just received my copy of Gary Baseman's "Dumb Luck" book. I immediately felt compelled to pop an Elvis Costello record on my hi-fi and sit down with an ice-cold martini and go through the book cover to cover TWICE!

Gary Baseman's colors and shapes are wildly beautiful! His point of view is laugh-out-loud funny! That combination makes this book a joy to savor!