TBRU XV Artist

The Dallas Bears are very happy to be able to present the artist for the TBRU XV - Pantheon artwork:  Dubon.

 This year's theme, TBRU-XV Pantheon "Party with the Gods" was inspired by the Bear Art of Dubon.

Dubon is an Italian illustrator and designer who loves drawing woofy Bear Men and related art in his free time.  He is a very accomplished and skilled illustrator living in Rome, Italy.  His skill is matched only by his generosity as he has worked very hard on TBRU-XV Pantheon, the Dallas Bears annual charitable event, donating his time and creative efforts to help make TBRU a success.

Dubon says that what he illustrates is more a "tension towards" a pleasure than an "achieved" pleasure.  As a Bear illustrator he chooses "to illustrate our everyday life:  sensuality and eroticism that are into every single act and gesture we do, but only into those natrual and not preteermined or staged.  Those are far better done with someone special.  We don't need to look for heat into special places or circumstances.  It's our experience that normal every day and unadventurous experiences can reveal little exciting situations.  That is what I likes to draw.  That is Dubon Bear Art."

Dubon first became interested in Bears and bearish men as he discovered the Gay Bear subculture through the internet about 10 years ago.  He recognized himself as a bear (a "pocket" bear, really...), in his body, in his interests and in his taste.  The internet was his first bridge toward a new self consciousness that later would let him meet new persons and to live a better and different life.  He says that discovering the bear subculture meant that for him:  being able to be fully himself.

He got his start drawing and doing illustrations of Bears when he used to live and study in Naples, about 8 years ago.  At that time a "pioneer" opened in the historical center of the city, close to "Plebiscito square", the first gay bookstore of the sourth of Italy: "Libreria Mercurio" (Mercury Bookstore).  They became friends when the owner discovered Dubon's illustrations and he asked him to create a leaflet and then a series of drawing.  That was the first series, 12 watercolour illustrations of woofy men playing on the beach.

Some time later a comic-bookstore in Palermo ('Altroquando") invited him to show some of his drawings:  that was a second series of drawings, titled "Abbraccioterapia" ("Hug Therapy").  This series of illustrations is a celebration of Bear men that can be found in all of our everyday life experiences.  After attending University his free time disappeared.  Now he works as illustrator and designer, but has found that the Bear-type work has diminished day by day.  The collaboration with TBRU would be a prompt to find the time and occasions to go on with the "Bear side" of his work and meet new chances to collaborate.

As an illustrator and designer he works mainly on games.  "We know that bears love eating and dancing (as well as a few other things we won't go into if you know what we mean).  But Bears are not cookie cutter people and have a wide variety of interests such as playing with cards, boardgames and roleplaying."  Dubon says "Why not to do one for bears and their friends?  If people like and play it I'll work on a more professional product.  "The Game of the Bear" is a version of an simple boardgame very famous in Italy, "The Game of the Goose", that has a few and simple rules:  a good starting point.  It's sort of experiment.  We'll have to see what happens."

It was Dubon Bear's Olympus series that inspired the Dallas Bears in selecting TBRU-XV Pantheon for this year's event theme.  This woofy series of drawings and illustrations features include such woofy pantheonic gods and figures as Zeus, Poseidon, Hercules, Pan, Neptune, Bachus, Thor, Mercury, Aries and more.  The Zeus form was selected as TBRU-XV's main art image this year and will be available to all attendees on the run t-shirt.  His other Bearish god forms wil also be available for purchase at the event Vendors Market and soon online, as will those found in his Abbraccioterapia series of drawings.  Both series of illustrations clearly show the Bears sense of humor and playfulnes whether it's taking a shower, getting a haircut, or getting ready to toss a lightening bolt down from Mt. Olympus.  Dubon bear says "Now, have a look around and enjoy my sweet and hot playing bears!"

Be sure to check Dubon's website where you can see some more of his Bear drawings and download free stuff.  He updates his site so make sure that you come and visit his site from time to time. 

We also look forward to hosting Dubon Bear Art so that we can all have the opportunity to meet this very talented, generous and WOOFY man at TBRU-XV Pantheon.