Mm interview with Jon Burgerman

23/06/2009

bugermanstickerTo celebrate the release of our first original sticker kit, and a collaboration with doodle captain Jon Burgerman, we covered our site in crazy colourful doodads, and then we put our heads together and wrote ourselves a little interview to send to the man himself.

So, sit down and relax, and meet the man behind the doodles; mister Burgerman. Oh and don’t forget to pop into the PSN store on Thursday, and start using these stickers to brighten up your levels!

Mm:Please introduce yourself!

    Hello there, I am an artist called Jon, I am not worm or mole based but do have a beard. I draw, paint and scan but do not juggle bowling pins or press delicate wild-flowers. I’ve worked for many important sounding clients and have never had a single filling or even been stung by a bee. I have exhibited my work far and wide, the furthest being in Australia and the widest being in China.

    I enjoy carbohydrates and music from old computer games and am not a fan of lifting heavy objects, going up ladders or football teams who play in red. One day, when all of this is over, I want to go to sleep and not get up until noon at the earliest, unless of course I need a wee, in which case I’d get up but get back in before the duvet goes cold.

Mm:When did you start drawing? How did your style emerge?

    I started drawing, as all children do. when I was a child.
    The style evolved over time I guess. I didn’t consciously design it, it’s just how I naturally draw.

Mm:What inspires your work? Do you have any things that you come back to when you are needing some inspiration?

    I like things that are found in the natural world, like animals and fruit. And of course Fruit Flies, a combination of the two.

    Other artists, big and small, provide me with lots of inspiration too, though sometimes it can induce bouts of green hued jealousy.

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Mm:Do you carefully plan your pictures or do you prefer a stream-of consciousness approach?

    A little bit of both actually. Sometimes it’s more one than the other too, it really depends on how I’m thinking and what I’m doodling.

    Either way I like to keep things open enough for improvisation and mistakes. Sometimes your hand knows what it’s doing before you do !

Mm:Who are your heroes in art?

    Tony Hart of course (RIP), Matt Groening, Mike Mills, Dave the Chip, Devil Robots, Kurt Schwitters.. plus many more

Mm:Have you ever committed a crime against art?

    Oh probably loads. Do I have to admit them here? I hope not.

Mm:Have you ever committed a crime?  A proper one.

    Not really, well, nothing serious like murder or cat-napping.  As I child I think I might of kicked a swan but I think my older brother made me do it. (No harm was done to the swan, I kick like a weakling)

Mm:What is your ultimate artistic dream?

    To dance in front of millions of people, whilst singing that opera song from the 1990 world cup. If not that then I’d settle for making an animated series of my characters.

Mm:Was the greedy swine drawn from life? :)

    Everything comes from somewhere!

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Mm:If you were able to change the first part of your surname to be any other kind of food, what would it be? For instance, Haggisman.

    Nice idea. I think maybe I’d go for foods I really like:
    Jon Pickleman
    Jon Vegandumplingman
    Jon SaltedKettlecrispsman
    Jon Recesespiecesman
    Jon Porridgeman

Mm:Who is your favourite character of your own design, and why?

    I can’t pick a favourite, imagine how that’d make all the others feel!
    I have a soft spot for Pickle Pig because he eats things, pickles them in his belly and then plops them out for people to eat.

Mm:Who is your favourite cartoon character in general and why?

    I do love Droopy. All Tex Avery’s characters were brilliant. I should of mentioned him as a hero.
    I like it when Droopy appears in after a character has tried to escape him by flying half way around the world, going up a remote mountain, locking himself into a room, opening a cupboard… and finding Droopy there.Ha.

Mm:Do you ever play videogames? If so, which ones?

    Yes yes but not as much as I’d like to. I need more hours in the day.
    Currently I’m working on GTA on the DS. I like the DS and PSP because I can carry them around and sneak in the odd game of something on the move. I never get a chance to play my consoles at home.
    I’m a big fan of 16-bit era gaming and love 8-bit music.
    I like platformers and things which are easy to pick up and play and not too long to get through, like LocoRoco for example.

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Some new Burgerman Merch that is due to hit stores soon – WANT!

Mm:What do you hope to see people using your stickers for in LittleBigPlanet?

    Fun of course! and maybe secret rude things.

Mm:If you were to build a level in LittleBigPlanet, what would it be like?

    A big spaghetti mess of doodle-soya-meat-balls and flakes of stinky cheese!

Mm:If you could add another word to the following mantra, what would it be?  Play, Create, Share and…….

    Relax?
    Sleep ?
    Keep all the best stuff for yourself ?

Thanks Jon! Burgerman’s sticker kit will be out in two days time, on Thursday 25th June, and should be priced at $1.99 / £1.59. If you can’t wait until then, why not buy some real stickers and start putting them all over your house and friends?