Hasta La Ideas

Watercolor illustrations combine Wes Anderson style with wildlife and folklore

Brooke Weeber‘s delicate, darkly humorous watercolor-and-ink illustrations are one
part Wes Anderson, one part Edward Gorey. Fantastical wolves and deer roam freely
through pastel-tinted clouds and trees, sharing space with bearded strongmen and booze. Though the Northwest native admits that she’s a huge fan of Anderson, she cites Greek and Native American art as her primary influence.

“I love the simple line figures painted onto vases and sewn into tapestries, and the use of geometric shapes and patterns [in Greek and Native American art],” says Weeber. “They also show an obvious appreciation for the natural world.”

Weeber studied fine art at the University of Oregon, but moved to New York shortly after graduation to exercise her artistry in a completely different field—cake decorating. After four years on the East Coast, she began to miss the wildlife that plays such a prominent role in her illustrations and moved back to Portland. “Once I was more acclimated, I started to really appreciate the amazing things that New York had to offer—the culture and diversity alone is much harder to find in Oregon,” reflects Weeber. “But alas, in the end, the chaotic lifestyle wasn’t for me.”

Besides illustrating album covers for local luminaries such as Blitzen Trapper and Loch
Lomond, Weeber shows her work locally and sells it through Etsy. Her fruits and
vegetables calendar is a beautiful and practical guide for anyone who likes to eat locally and shop at farmers’ markets but has no idea when figs are actually in season. Her “Animals of the Pacific Northwest” print might also reassure anyone who has been duped by the latest crop of teenage vampire romances; werewolves are not endemic to this corner of the United States.

Prices range from $4 for a greeting card to $50. For more of Weeber’s work, check her website or her
Etsy shop.