Jason Brooks was born in London, but spent most of his childhood in Brighton on the south coast of England. From an early age he drew and painted avidly and first received freelance commissions in his early teens. He studied graphic design and illustration at St Martin's School of Art and followed this up after a travelling stint by attending the Royal College of Art to study for a Masters in illustration. In 1992, he won the prestigious Vogue/Sotheby's Cecil Beaton Award for fashion illustration.Brooks created an identity through posters andpromotional material for Pushca, the legendary London club of the 90s. He was one of the firstillustrators to adapt to the new medium ofcomputers. This, combined with his love of drawing, helped to pioneer the new medium and bring abouta revolution in the world of illustration as well as a rebirth of what had previously been seen by some as a disappearing art form.In 1999, Brooks began a series of CD covers for Hed Kandi which went on to sell over four millionalbums worldwide. After 50 illustrated covers, in 2005 he decided it was time to move on and nowcreates music artwork exclusively for the new label Fierce Angel distributed by Universal music.In 2000 he joined forces with FOLIO, the leading London illustration agency who still representhim worldwide. www.folioart.comA range of Jason Brooks products are available under his own label through licensing agreements with BRB in Spain and with Mark's Inc in Japan wh oin 2007 will be launching his Jil & Jet character range of stationery and calendars.WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON AND WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR 2007?This week I'm drawing different sets of twins wearing lingerie for Neiman Marcus - the American department store. I’m also working on new artwork for 'Digital Angel' a forthcoming album which will only be released online. I am also very excited about all the new work coming up with Fierce Angels - we have some great albums scheduled to come out in the spring and early summer next year. As well as this I’m in talks on another very exciting project which could take my work in a whole new direction in 2008 so to risk a cliché, please watch this space!
ARE THERE ANY MUSICAL ARTISTS/BANDS YOU ARE A FAN AND WOULD LOVE TO WORK WITH?One would have to be The Killers. I think their whole Las Vegasy rock image is really inspiring and I see so many pictures in my mind when I listen to their stuff. I'd also like to draw Pete Doherty as there is undoubtedly something weirdly fascinating about him. I think his own particular brand of rock and roll squalor would translate brilliantly into very black and white graphic images and underneath it all he's also incredibly talented musically. I'd also work for free on anything with Madonna or David Bowie.IS THERE ANYTHING YOU COLLECT OBSESSIVELY? WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE THING YOU HAVE COLLECTED?As a child I was obsessed with American comics. There was a great shop in Brighton called Vortex books which I used to go to every Saturday morning and buy old 60s and early 70s DC titles like The Flash, Green Lantern and Batman. There were a huge influence on my drawing and as a boy also pretty much taught me to read. Now I have a very modest art collection and I also collect Murano and Scandinavian glass - but only in smoke blue. It always seems a good idea to keep collections under control otherwise they can take over your life. If I had the money I would definitely become a serious art collector. It is the passion of my life and how wonderful would it be to live with a Matisse painting or the odd Warhol drawing?DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVOURITE PROJECTS YOU’VE WORKED ON OR CLIENTS YOU’VE WORKED WITH?Drawing at the Couture fashion shows in Paris with The Independent newspaper was a fabulous job although it was always hard at the time to come back to London and being a penniless artist in Portobello after so much unremitting glamour and luxury. I also enjoyed working on an animation project In Australia a few years ago advertising Finlandia vodka which took me back and forth to Sydney a few times which is a great city. But I have to say all the work I've done with Mark Doyle both at Hed Kandi and now at Fierce Angel has been the most fun and rewarding.WHO DO YOU SEE AS YOUR CONTEMPORARIES AND WHO DO YOU RATE?I really like the Spanish illustrator Jordi Labanda's sense of style and humour and I know how technically difficult it is to effortlessly paint the way he does. I also really admire David Downton's completely brilliant technique and he's also a lovely chap. Tyler Brulee, the founder of Wallpaper, has also been an inspiration among my contemporaries although not as an illustrator more for his sense of style and particular aesthetic sensibility which I relate to. His years at Wallpaper were massively influential on so many areas of design and certainly had an effect on my work too.
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