'Bob's Burgers' Artist Jay Howell Has Sex with Art

Jay Howell is an illustrator living in Los Angeles. He created the main characters for such hit television programs as Bob’s Burgers and Sanjay and Craig, the latter of which he is the executive producer, co-creator, and art director for. He also works with fashion companies like Vans and Gucci. Howell’s new zine anthology, Punks Git Cut, showcases his love of dogs, boobs, skateboard culture, and general hanging loose.

Interested to know more about his colorful career and work, The Creators Project interviewed Jay Howell:

The Creators Project: When did you start doodling? Did you have any particular influences or did your art evolve based on your interests?

Jay Howell: I've been drawing since I can remember. My influences are everywhere.

I think it's constantly evolving. I love to learn about new things through discovery and also from others. I'm waking up with Shel Silverstein books and comics, having lunch with internet skate vids/movies/TV and going to bed checking out Playboys and cold beers. I am very a enthusiastic person and in love with the world.

A photo posted by Jay Howell (@punksgitcut) on Oct 31, 2015 at 7:42pm PDT

I got into your illustrations in 2006 or so after seeing them on the art and culture site Fecal Face; I love dogs and skating and you drew that a lot.

You have a dog. Tell me about him please. And skating. But mostly your dog, named Street Dog, who you found on the street.

Skateboarding and zines have brought me everything and I'm eternally grateful for that. All the best artists and people love to let the hippie ride. Dogs are how people wish their life could be. I'm obsessed with my Street Dog. He's so fucking funny and I love to laugh.

Your Playboy images are fantastic and I recently saw some fashion sneak into your instagram… Gucci. Very cool juxtaposition. Please, tell me more about how these came to be.

I always want to do a million different things so my time is limited. Sometimes it's fun to draw in magazines or books like pretend it's a real part of it, like you worked it forever and it got published. I love naked women and drawing too. Gucci is so, so cool. I’m not really where I fit in with them yet but I hope it all works out. I love fashion, I love fancy stuff.

You designed the characters for both Bob's Burgers and Sanjay and Craig. You are a career illustrator now, which is well deserved. How did those opportunities come about?

Bob’s Burgers was because I had art shows in San Francisco. The creator would come to my shows and check out the animations that me and my partner Jim Dirschberger would do. He asked me to work on this new idea he had and taught me and continues to teach me so much. Creating Sanjay and Craig is a product of everything my partner Jim and I have learned. It's been a slow, slow trip. When I draw pictures it's always narrative based. Making cartoons makes sense.

Tell me about "Punks Git Cut," a name you use on Instagram and as the title of your most recent book.

It’s the name of my zine series. I have no idea what it means other than I made it up about 20 years ago. It came to me while I was waiting for a bathtub to fill up at my parents house and I wrote the whole first zine in the bathtub.

I don’t like taking tubs. How do you think technology and social media have changed art in the past decade? Has it impacted you directly?

Yeah, totally. I used to have to go to Kinkos to make zines. They would hand you a key number counter thing that would tally your copies. I'd rack up a zillion copies, put them into my backpack then place the counter on a stack of like 10 copies. Then I’d fake an accident and fling the key counter and copies off the table scrambling the key numbers upon impact. I love Instagram and the internet but I miss all the great magazines like Tokion that would promote art in the 90's.

I feel like your art is pure happiness. I've always turn to it when I feel down and it gives me a boost. Even when the characters are in complete chaos it feels sensical somehow. Is this intentional or is it just the fancy-loving, enthusiastic, enamored-with-the-world Jay Howell showing through?

It's all narrative even when there's no words. I’m really just trying to make myself and people laugh. Life is super hard. Fuck, I hate feeling shitty or sad. I hate when I'm trying to have a good time and some bummer is bringing me down. I love the summer, playing with my dog, getting drunk, and humping my girlfriend. I try to put that into my art. Sex fun. I have sex with my art.

Click here to visit Jay Howell's website.

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