we’re the talk of the town
“People who have attended in the past compare it to the parties at Hearst castle, or the parties in Citizen Kane. It’s like getting the golden ticket in Willy Wonka. It is a magical weekend that is greater than the sum of its parts. It’s a romanticized take on an artist’s life, almost like a trip back in time. It’s like a trip down the art-rabbit-hole.”
“The best way to describe Beyond Brookledge is that it's as if somebody fit the L.A. Opera and Burning Man into the Magic Castle, and then had a three-day slumber party.”
-LA WEEKLY
“Over the years, Baby Tattoo has evolved from a small publishing house to a counter-culture big top, a carnival of astounding art and outsider entertainment.”
-VILLAGE NEWS
“Attendees of this year’s Baby Tattooville at Riverside’s Mission Inn witnessed something that they will not soon forget for a very long time.”
-ARRESTED MOTION
“Strange, whimsical and wacky don’t exactly square with the image of a community that’s long prided itself on orange crate labels as art. But this publisher, Bob Self, enamored of Riverside’s dreamlike downtown, organized a completely different kind of art show called pop surrealism.”
-PRESS-ENTERPRISE
“The 3rd annual Beyond Brookledge at the Riverside Mission Inn was a two-night sleep-over with music, magic and mysterious underground tunnels and juggling and interactive puzzles and...you get the picture.”
-LA WEEKLY
“Curated by Bob Self, the Baby Tattoo: Carnival of Astounding Art [was] created in 2003 as a path for daredevil artists to share their work with fans of the unusual. “
-BOING BOING
“Baby Tattooville is the brainchild of Bob Self, of Baby Tattoo books. He only sells 40 tickets per year. This year he brought in artists from all over the world to participate in the annual Art Jam.
-LA WEEKLY
“Renowned portrait photographer Allan Amato has been traveling the world, applying the artistic vision and taste for ambitious storytelling familiar in his own celebrity and editorial work to instead depicting fine artists from all over the map — geographically and stylistically. Having captured the artists’ likenesses, Amato then turns the tables, asking them to in turn reinterpret themselves by modifying his portraits of them. The results are vivacious, emotional, eclectic, and profound — and thankfully, will be collected in a giant book from Baby Tattoo Publishing, along with a gallery show at La Luz de Jesus.
-HUFFINGTON POST
“In today's art world of big names, big money and big egos, it’s exciting to see someone do things differently. To have the chance to tap into a different community of artists, and get away from the typical L.A. art scene for a while really is a unique opportunity. An event like “Baby Tattooville” truly could be life-changing, and seeing the exhibition at the Riverside Art Museum is a must for anyone in the low brow or new brow art world.”
-INLAND EMPIRE WEEKLY
“Event creator Bob Self says it best ‘...People who have attended in the past compare it to the parties at Hearst castle, or the parties in Citizen Kane. It’s like getting the golden ticket in Willy Wonka. It is a magical weekend that is greater than the sum of its parts. It’s a romanticized take on an artist’s life, almost like a trip back in time. It’s like a trip down the art-rabbit-hole.’”
-LA WEEKLY
“Rockabilly culture king Coop, macabre illustrator Gris Grimly, surreal-meets-swanky graphic designer Ragnar, and bizarrely beautiful doll maker Marina Bychkova are almost certain to draw a crowd...All four artists will bring new prints and works to show off and sell at the signing session and meet-and-greet at the shop… And for a some of the artists involved in the tour -- like Bychkova, in particular -- getting an in-person gander at their work isn't possible outside a gallery or museum setting.”
-PHOENIX NEW TIMES