Gary Baseman

While Gary Baseman’s colorful illustrations may appear on the box of the board game Cranium and the cover of The New Yorker, his work extends far beyond illustration to installation art, performance, and toy design. Growing up near Hollywood, Baseman was influenced by the Los Angeles art scene and artists like Walt Disney and Andy Warhol. Among his most popular characters is Blackie the Cat, a fanged black cat who can be seen in his sketches and sculptures and is also sold in plush form. Baseman often places his eccentric, oval-eyed characters into fantastical settings, creating a dream-like atmosphere. Baseman has referred to his own work as “Pervasive Art,” pointing to his incorporation of different media as a way to engage a vast audience. During a stint in New York City, he created illustrations for publications and companies like Time, Rolling Stone, and Nike. Baseman later expanded into television with the animated show Teacher’s Pet, which earned him several Emmys.