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Bored Panda reached out to Brian to learn more about him and his creative process. The artist told us that this whole project started on a random Friday back in 2016. "I was drawing a cartoon character that was made from a coffee cup, and I thought it would be funny to make the hot sleeve his t-shirt. After sketching it out, I thought it was funny that he was wearing a shirt and no pants, so I doodled a cup again with a tiny butt sticking out under the hot sleeve. I posted it to my Instagram just for fun with the hashtag #buttsonthings as a joke. People seemed to like it, so I did another one the next Friday, then another, and it quickly became an end-of-the-week tradition. Now, eight years later, I’m up to 443 consecutive Friday drawings!"
"During the pandemic, a few of my videos went semi-viral, and I was lucky enough to have a publisher reach out and offer me a book deal. I made an art book that included lots of my Friday drawings. After this book was featured in Barnes and Noble and became a bestseller during the holiday season, the publisher asked about a follow-up, so I started working on a second book. Because I knew that a lot of families followed the series and watched the drawing videos together every Friday, I thought it would be fun to make a more interactive book, which is why I chose to do the coloring/activity book!"
Brian has lots of ideas related to his cheeky drawings. Besides books, the artist has also made a "Butts on Things" card game. According to Brian, it came about as a collaboration between him and Gamewright. "The illustrations were easy, but we also wanted to figure out a fast, fun, and energetic game to match the whole focus of the series. We also thought it was important to create unique gameplay, but also something that wasn’t too complicated for kids to understand and enjoy playing."
Brian shared that for the Friday drawings, the process changes from week to week. "I do have a list on my phone that I keep of potential objects I could draw because sometimes ideas pop into my head at the most random times. Sometimes I try to tailor the drawing to an event happening, a holiday, or a convention I’m attending, etc. Other times, I just sit down and see what pops into my head—sometimes the most random ones turn into some of the most popular posts! The trickiest part at this point is trying to remember if I’ve already done some of the ideas I think of!"
It appears that these drawings are very popular. Brian admitted that what began as a lighthearted end-of-the-week tradition has unexpectedly become significant, resonating with many and completely transforming his life. "It’s surreal to walk around and randomly spot my game, puzzles, calendars, or books out in stores all over the place. Sometimes I get off a conference call where 10 people are discussing marketing strategies for 'Butts on Things,' and it’s just wild (and a little hilarious) to step back and think about."
On a personal level, it’s been incredibly rewarding to get messages from people who tell me they always look for the drawings on Friday and that the series has brought them some much-needed joy during some of the toughest moments of their lives. It’s amazing what a silly little doodle can do—and it’s amazing the power of humor. I feel like we all need more smiles in our lives, and if drawing silly little butts will help with that, then I guess I’m happy to step up to the plate—there are definitely worse jobs out there. If my 13-year-old self had only known this was a career option..."
