Kawaii! » Q&A with Jon Knox of Hello, Brute
A few months ago I discovered the whimsical world of Hello, Brute: a collection of hand-cast polyurethane resin toys brought to life (with a very fashion-forward and bright coat of paint) by Portland designer Jon Knox. Jon describes his creations as “an all-boy crew who are often stuck somewhere between the best and worst moments of their lives.” I totally fell in love with the character Danny, a discombobulated-looking nerd with slightly stoned doe eyes peering out from behind thick black prescription frames and decided to dig deeper… I was honored to have had the opportunity to ask Jon some questions about his design career and the newest addition to his shop: Pepper (seen above) of which 5 signed, limited-edition 9″ figures are up for grabs (for a wee sum of $175) in the Hello, Brute shop!
?How did Hello, Brute begin? What’s behind the name?
I was in college for graphic design and was getting kind of tired of the idea that 75% of a graphic designer’s job was to take other people’s images and typefaces and slap them on a poster or in a book. I had been drawing since I was a child and really wanted to incorporate that into my work. All but about two of my professors were less than thrilled with the idea, so I began developing a body of work outside of my studies at design school. One of my professors introduced me to vinyl toys in 2005 and I took to it almost immediately. It was when I began making toys that I decided to brand myself as Hello, Brute.
The name came from my interest in outsider art, and my drawings are typically kind of wobbly and unedited. Brute seemed like the perfect word to describe it and it was an added bonus that it rhymed with the word “cute” which my work has been described as, which I like. I think sometimes people gravitate to my work because it usually comes off as cute at first, but once they spend some time with the characters and notice their idiosyncrasies, they like them because they’re kind of weird.
?Take us through the process behind creating a Hello, Brute toy. Where/how does the idea take shape? What are the mediums you use – from concept to completion? How long does the process take?
I actually don’t do that much sketching. I think doing dozens of iterations of something can make it look too labored over and wring out its personality. That’s fine for a car seat, but I like the story that the dents in my toys tell. Sometimes the toys stem from a drawing I’ve done, but often I just start sculpting them without a solid plan. I start with a foil and wire armature (which determines the size, proportions, and gesture), and I build on layers of polymer clay from the inside out. Their clothes and facial details are the last things I sculpt. Even once the sculpting is done, the character is still somewhat abstract, and isn’t fully realized until he’s painted. In terms of media, I start with the armature and polymer clay to make the original character, silicone to make a mold of the original, and polyurethane resin to cast reproductions. After that, each toy is painted by hand with acrylic paints and coated with a varnish. Realistically, it’s about a week and a half’s worth of work to go from initial idea to the first prototype of a toy.
?Your characters are little hipster fashionistas! How on earth do you pick what they’re going to wear for the rest of their lives? Do you sometimes wish you had given a character a different outfit?
Yeah sometimes it’s difficult to pick what the characters wear. Because I paint each one by hand, I typically like to sculpt something that’s more versatile and I can alter the clothes with the paint job. That’s why they’ll often have a basic t-shirt, or a hoodie or something like that. Lately I’ve been adding some more detail in the sculpts and I’ve been happy with how it’s turned out.
I’m definitely one of those people that struggles not to discredit their work from 6 months back. It’s not that I’m not proud of my body of work, but I’m always thinking of where I’m going to take my work next and I always want to put my best foot forward. So it’s not that I regret doing one thing or another, I look back on previous work and think about what I can do to make the next one better.
?So, Pepper: tell us about his personality, his name, his Velcro shoes… When and why did he get the sailor tattoo? Is Pepper part of a click of Hello, Brute characters like the Klepties?
I’ve found that with back-stories, people are much quicker to judge what type of artist you are and make vast assumptions about your skill level and personality. I am not a writer, so I like to tell stories with images instead of words. I think when I write complex stories about my work, it dumbs it down. My characters develop through a bit of an organic and abstract process, so I don’t set out to make good guys and bad guys. I like when people try and guess what they’re thinking, and I really like when they start to remind people of their friends and family.
In my mind, Pepper is a loner. The name was a result of hearing the name in several different places at the time I was sculpting him. Like most of my characters (and me), he’s one of those people that’s into fashion but kind of afraid of it too, so he goes with the bare minimum. He hasn’t committed buying new shoes yet. His hands are posed to show off his boner in his shorts.
?My personal favorite toy you’ve done is Danny because, well, he reminds me of me. Do you take custom requests? Have you modeled any of these characters after real people?
When my characters remind people of themselves, it’s one of the best compliments I can receive.
Though I’m busy at the moment, I take custom requests when I have the time. It’s always really fun trying to turn one of my toys into a portrait of someone else, which I get requests for quite a bit. Sometimes the characters are inspired by real people, but it’s maybe their mood more so than their appearance. There’s always a good bit of myself in them. My mom tells me all the time she thinks my characters look like me.
?What kind of commercial projects do you feel passionate about working on? If you could work with anyone or any company – who would it be and what would you create for them?
I’m always have an open ear when commercial projects knock on my door. I typically only take the ones where the client is interested in collaborating rather than beating me to death with rules. The bigger the client, the more I might be willing to bend obviously :) I don’t have any specific companies in mind that I’d like to work with, but I really think it would be cool to design prints for cut and sew clothes.
?Do you have any shows coming up? Where in the world can people see your work in the flesh? What’s coming up next for Hello, Brute?
My next solo show is at Rotofugi in Chicago. I’m going to have paintings, drawings, resin toys, and a collaboration with an insanely talented plush artist by the name of Felt Mistress. That’s the place to be to see my most current work all in one place. There are boutiques and toy stores that carry some of the stuff I make. I’m working on more merchandise including new clothes, fine art prints, odds & ends, and of course more toys. What’s coming up next? Definitely not sleep.
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