California artist Ray Brown says that, if he could have chosen his dream job after graduating college, it would have been working as a children’s book illustrator or science fiction fantasy book cover illustrator.
That wasn’t the path he took but, when you look at his charcoal drawings, you can see his love for illustration and for the natural world. Brown’s highly rendered images seem ready to leave the canvas for the world beyond. Each creature he draws is alive with personality and presence; it is not merely a one-dimensional depiction.
Art didn’t hold much interest for Brown as he was growing up. He will tell you he wasn’t “that kid”—you know, the one born with a crayon in his hand, destined to be an artist. It wasn’t until he was a junior in high school when his art teacher took his class to the Society of Illustrators Museum in New York City that the lightbulb went on. That trip, Brown says, changed his life.
Read the full article in the March/April 2026 issue.
Did Someone Say Pie?
charcoal
60″ by 25″
Missed Opportunity
charcoal
30″ by 30″
