Brian Bourassa, Artist and Pac-Man Lover

Cover artist Brian Bourassa is a self-taught pen-and-ink artist. From 2010 to 2014 he battled drug addiction and homelessness in and around San Francisco. Pac-Man Mouse (front and back covers) is part of his second solo show, Advanced Beings from a Primitive Plateau. The show came together in October and was hosted by Hospitality House Community Arts Program, a nonprofit that provides anyone who needs it a safe and organized space to create art.

Bourassa’s artist statement about the piece on Candy’s current cover can be read on the inside front cover. For more about his inspirations, read on.

What inspired you to create this piece?

I was inspired to make Pac-Man Mouse as a tonguein-cheek tribute to my favorite video game of the early 1980s — one of the first games I played as a teenager in an arcade. I thought it was important for him to time travel from my past and make a cameo in the form of ears on a mouse that looked sweet enough to eat. I wanted the eyes to look hypnotic, so I chose peppermint candy swirls. I wanted the chocolate ceramic mouse to appear like it was luring you in, using a spinning confectionery stare. I have always had Pac-Man Fever.

This piece was originally displayed with a Ms. Pac-Man piece. What is their relationship?

You can’t have Pac-Man without Ms. Pac-Man. They’re a unit! I thought it would be a shame if I left her out of the equation. The Ms. Pac-Man video game actually had a better animated story line when moving up between levels, so I’ve always had a bigger crush on her.

“If I can say one thing about the homeless experience, it is: Please don’t make assumptions.”

What medium do you like working in most?

I am self-taught and I mainly use pen and ink on paper. My passion is drawing. I feel a deeper sense of purpose when my drawing is based on a meditation to connect with a spiritual realm. I guess I’m a lot like Stevie Nicks when I work. I drape silk scarves over lamps, burn incense, and light candles. The only thing illuminated in my dark room is the drawing table where I work.

The ceramic work is new. I went to New Mexico to work in a ceramic studio for six months prior to my show. It was artistically affirming: I felt that for the first time I was making art to create and not only to survive.

What’s your involvement in the Hospitality House Community Arts Program?

The Community Arts Program offers various types of art supplies at no cost, and people are encouraged to explore what medium speaks to them. Many of the staff members are artists themselves. Their gentle guidance helps each artist develop over time.

The program also hosts small art workshops where an artist can sign up for further instruction on how to master their craft. CAP then provides a platform for art shows and helps encourage artists to participate. If the art sells, the artist receives 100 percent of the asking price.

What is one thing you want people to know about what it’s like to be homeless in San Francisco?

I’ve been off the street for four years. It was hard back then, but today it must be nearly impossible. If I can say one thing about the homeless experience, it is: Please don’t make assumptions. Many of us are or were in some form of transition. Being homeless saved my life from hardcore addiction and then gave me a new life as an artist. I am not ashamed of this period in my life — in fact, I wear it as a badge of honor.

You mentioned that sleeping on the streets during the day was how you stayed safe when you were homeless. What did you do at night?

Well, the first couple of years I was struggling with addiction, so the night time was the right time to get high and fly somewhat under the radar. When I finally decided to attend recovery groups during the day at Stonewall, it was only then that night became my security blanket to draw and work on art. The drawing became the harm-reduction method — my substitute for using drugs. I eventually drew myself off of the street and into chemical detox.

What do you want your legacy as an artist to be?

I don’t expect everybody to “get” my art, but I want my legacy to be about the attention to detail and the deep concentration it took to create a drawing or ceramic piece. I also want people to view my art as an ongoing healing process and to know that they too can heal themselves. Hopefully, my pieces will continue to resonate with spiritual depth and pay homage to the natural world that cradled me in sanctuary during my most dire time.

Anything else you want to share?

I would like to share my extreme gratitude for all the organizations throughout the city that helped me while I was homeless and also during my transition period off the street. I want to kindly remind organizations like Stonewall, Shanti, Glide, and the Coalition on Homelessness to reach out to me and other individuals who have overcome great obstacles and once again are thriving in the city. Our voices could make a huge difference to so many people still struggling, and to dispel many of the myths around homelessness.

By Jules Shell