Introducing Brandon Raymond Province

Introducing Brandon Raymond Province, an illustrator based in Missouri, USA. He has worked professionally in sequential illustration for more than 9 years. Brandon predominantly works digitally in Clip Studio but was originally trained in traditional techniques. Brandon’s artwork is expressive, dynamic, colorful, and fun. His work is influenced by illustrators such as Will Terry, Carey Pietsch, and Derek Laufman. Brandon has been featured as an artist in three local newspaper articles. Outside of illustration, Brandon has worked in the mental health field as a Peer Support Specialist for transitional-aged youth with first-onset psychosis and as a Community Support Specialist for an addiction recovery center. It has always been important to him to reach out to struggling people and find ways to improve their lives by helping them find resources and teaching them coping skills. Brandon also enjoys roleplaying, card games, and stand-up comedy. You can find comedic influence throughout his work.

We asked Brandon a few questions to get to know him better. Read on to learn more...

What would you say is your best piece of work / collaboration to date, and why?

I don’t know that I can pinpoint a specific “best piece” because of my emotional attachment to my work and because I am always developing and improving upon my abilities as an illustrator. For the sake of the question though, if I had to pick one piece, I would choose the cover I did for a graphic novel idea I had called “Furry Tales.” I would pick this piece because it is one of the most current pieces I’ve made and thus effectively exhibits my current skill level. Additionally, I love to draw anthropomorphic animals in epic fantasy settings. This piece covers all of that. 

Where do you like to go to be inspired, or how do you find your inspiration?

I tend to find inspiration everywhere I go. So I have no specific destination that I go to for inspiration. I do find a lot of inspiration by browsing the work of other illustrators, especially those who make comic books and graphic novels. Reading a graphic novel is almost always a guaranteed way to inspire world-building in my head. 

Is there anything you'd say you would be a good advocate for? Please elaborate if so.

I am a great advocate for mental health awareness and recovery. Outside of finding recovery for my mental health struggles, I also worked within the mental health community for a couple of years as a Peer Support Specialist, Community Support Specialist, Addiction Recovery Technician, and Harm Reduction Specialist. Having had my struggles with mental illness made it easier for other people to relate to my story and, subsequently, hear and absorb the coping skills I had to teach them. 

What would you say sets you apart from other illustrators? Something you feel is unique to you.

Something that sets me apart from other illustrators would be my unique perspective built by my vast experiences in life. I’ve seen a lot of things and I’ve done a lot of things and, because of that, I have an overflowing mental library to work with. 

If you have done paid commissions prior to joining the agency, what would you say is something that clients repeatedly come to you for (up to now)?

Up to now, clients have typically come to me for comic book work. I have also done quite a bit of character design but the vast majority of my commissioned work was with comics. 

How would you describe your style?

I would describe my style as fantastical, alluring, and somewhat mischievous in a comical sort of way. I started as a cartoonist, so a lot of my work is heavily 90s cartoon-inspired with strong pulls from years and years of Dungeons & Dragons and a love of comic books. 

Please give a scenario of a project that would mean the world to you, if you were offered it - something that connects to something meaningful to you.

It would mean the world to me if I got to work on graphic novels that tell stories with a focus on mental health awareness. Additionally, the “cherry on top” of said project would be if those stories utilized things like science fiction, magic, or fantastical characters. 

Are you working on any personal projects you can share with us?

I am currently working on a graphic novel called “Don’t Tell Me To Get Over It” which depicts my story of my path to recovery from addiction, gang life, and mental illness.

Finally, if you were to illustrate a book related to a real life person, who would that be?

I already plan to illustrate a book related to myself but if I had to pick someone other than myself, I’d love to illustrate a book about Frida Kahlo. Her story has always been incredibly inspiring to me and it’d feel good to show the world that you can go from hopeless to inspiring. 

If you’d like more info, please contact: [email protected]

At illo agency, we pride ourselves in representing a collation of global illustrators, distinctly diverse in creativity and uniquely celebrated by like-minded clients across a range of commercial markets.