feature: “Bearly Danny”
Growing up gay in Bangkok, Thailand wasn't easy for the artist behind a popular gay web comic, "Bearly Danny." Coming from a conservative family, and not really feeling any close ties to the gay community there, he turned to art to create his own world where he felt he could live freely as himself. Though he thought his eventual move to Canada might "magically" fix this issue, it wasn't until he met like-minded people online that he truly found a sense of community. He remains quite private about his personal life, but his deep understanding of the reality, diversity, and complexity of everyday living as a gay man remains charmingly (and erotically) apparent in his work.
The artist’s current main focus is his popular web comic Bearly Danny, a story that was born in 2018, as a creative outlet from his work as a professional graphic designer. Through the characters, he explores the nuances of themes, light and heavy, that are inevitable in all types of relationships among gay men and their friends and partners. The attention to detail in storyline and artwork is beautiful, and his use of chibi* characters to reflect feelings proves a playful and humorous way to investigate childlike, yet complex, emotional circumstances. [*chibi- a Japanese slang term meaning "short," used to describe a specific style of youthful large-headed caricatures with exaggerated expressions]
When I asked about his process, he said:
"I usually spend a lot of time coming up with ideas months before I actually write a script. Most people say I am a perfectionist and I partly agree with them. I’d often see mistakes in my work and that’s why I tend to change things at the last minute. I just can’t help myself. So when it comes to the first few steps of creating anything, I take my sweet-ass time, rather than settle on the first thing that comes to mind. Most of the time, this method works great. Other times, I drive myself crazy a little bit."
Although Bearly Danny is likely his most recognizable work, the artist is an extremely talented digital portrait painter, and has an enviable knack for creating powerful activist art as well.
The rise in popularity of Bearly Danny among the online bear community has helped put the artist on the queer map. He currently has over 55,000 followers on Instagram, where he posts new pages from the series (among other great pieces) almost daily. It is clear he remains passionate about his characters, but his longterm goals include a foray into directing, where he hopes to explore LGBTQ+ stories even further. He is currently working on getting his first feature film project going, about which he says, "Hopefully, my team and I will have some good news to share soon."
The artist who creates Bearly Danny (that’s the character’s name, not his) currently resides in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and his digital art can be found in his Instagram feed and uncensored on his Patreon page.
visit the dandy gallery for more uncensored work
”Bearly Danny”
additional viewing :: Flame On Show’s YouTube Interview
instagram :: @bearlydanny
twitter :: @bearlydanny
patreon (uncensored content) :: Bearly Danny
images provided by Bearly Danny
