{"id":1641,"date":"2009-04-14T00:01:26","date_gmt":"2009-04-14T06:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=1641"},"modified":"2009-12-29T08:35:29","modified_gmt":"2009-12-29T14:35:29","slug":"seven-questions-and-a-little-bit-of-soup-over-breakfast-with-calef-brown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=1641","title":{"rendered":"Seven Questions—And a Little Bit of Soup—Over Breakfast with Calef Brown"},"content":{"rendered":"

The phrase “signature style” gets thrown around a lot when folks are talking about the work of authors and illustrators, and if you ever meet someone to whom the meaning of that phrase is unclear, just show them the work of Calef Brown<\/strong><\/a>. The signature in his style is his and his alone, unlike any other. Sure, you can take his quirky wit and very angular illustrations on a flat plane and liken his style to others’ (the wonderful work of Maira Kalman<\/strong><\/a> comes to mind, for one), but no one else does creative proportions, purple faces (and almost every other shade imaginable), distinctive elongated noses, and the overall postmodern folk-art vibe quite like Calef. His art has an energy that jumps off the page, and the best thing about his poetry is that you never quite know what you’re going to get. Happy surprises all around. <\/p>\n

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Publishers Weekly<\/em>—in their review of Calef’s newest title, Soup for Breakfast<\/strong><\/a><\/em> (Houghton Mifflin, 2008)—touches upon that very thing when they write, “Brown’s…fun-filled poems feature an unpredictable range of topics and imagery.” Best of all, they closed the review with this: “A smorgasbord of punditry and weirdness, this collection will remind kids that poetry and pictures can exist just for kicks.” Just as it should be. Calef strikes again. <\/p>\n

Calef’s here this morning for a breakfast chat. His devotion to soup for breakfast isn’t just limited to his book titles either:
“…Coincidentally (or not), my latest book is titled Soup for Breakfast<\/strong><\/a><\/em>, and soup is, in fact, my top choice for a morning meal. Vegetable barley, cream of cauliflower, or anything with mushrooms.<\/font> When I\u2019m in New York or LA and have access to good South Indian food, my favorite breakfast is idli, pongal, and maybe a couple vadai (spicy donuts). I drink green tea every morning, usually sencha.”<\/font> Mushroom soup: Mmm. I think I’ll join him in this culinary adventure. Let’s set the table and get the basics from Calef this morning. <\/p>\n

Note: Some of Calef’s sketches and illustrations have been re-sized to fit within the blog’s template but are linked to the original file. You can click on those hyperlinked spreads to see them larger and in more detail. <\/p>\n

Also, Calef sent a bunch of great sketches that I absolutely must post. I’ll include the ones not included in the interview itself at the bottom of this post for other illustration fans.<\/em> <\/p>\n

* * * * * * *<\/font><\/center><\/p>\n

7-Imp<\/font><\/strong>: Are you an illustrator or author\/illustrator?<\/font><\/p>\n

Calef<\/font><\/strong>: Author\/Illustrator. <\/p>\n


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“Tiny Baby Sphinx. \/ She looks at me and blinks. \/ I offer bits of cat food, \/ the kind that really stinks. \/ I wonder what she thinks about \/ at nighttime when she slinks about, \/ inviting other sphinxes out \/ to gather in the moonlight.” — “Tiny Baby Sphinx” from <\/em>Flamingos on the Roof: Poems and Paintings<\/strong><\/a>, Houghton Mifflin, 2006<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n

7-Imp<\/font><\/strong>: Can you list your books-to-date?<\/font><\/p>\n

Calef<\/font><\/strong>: <\/p>\n

Written and Illustrated:<\/p>\n