By Patrick Lucas
Staff Writer
The beach, golf carts, scenic real estate, tennis, and stand up paddle boarding are just a few daily things that are common in this community we call home. Cartoonist, Ian Freshman shows us his take on Manhattan Beach lifestyle through his Instagram account, @the.bubble.
@the.bubble has around 5,700 followers and it’s main purpose is to poke fun at daily life in Manhattan Beach. The instagram has comedic cartoons with his representations of life in the South Bay.
“The Bubble started with me sending cartoons to my friends who also grew up in Manhattan Beach.” Bubble creator, Ian Freshman said. “I was just trying to make them laugh at how ridiculous life in this little beach community is. The cartoons got passed around with great responses, so I decided I’d share them with the world on Instagram.”
Ian Freshman grew up in Manhattan Beach, and has seen the community evolve into a more tourist oriented, affluent community over the years. He offers a unique perspective on the modernization of the South Bay.
“I’m definitely nostalgic for the small town that once was Manhattan Beach.” Freshman said. “It was a lot less crowded when I was a kid and downtown was all Mom and Pop shops. Change is inevitable and every town goes through it, but few towns have changed so much and so fast as Manhattan and Hermosa Beach.”
The account mainly posts drawings done in classic cartoon style with a short punchline at the bottom. Some posts are black and white while others are color. At the moment, the account has 106 different cartoons.
“My artistic inspiration comes from the great cartoonists I grew up admiring like Bill Watterson, Rick Griffin, Charles Schulz and Gary Larson.” Freshman said. “I always wanted to be a cartoonist when I was young and The Bubble is way for me to see if I could actually do it. Cartooning looks easy, but it is really very difficult!”
The account started posting in November 2014 and has had a continuously growing fan base ever since. The account has 5,786 followers; consisting of current or past South Bay residents. You have to have some insight to fully understand the satiric, inside jokes highlighting the more humorous aspects of life in Manhattan Beach.
“I’m coming up on the one year anniversary of The Bubble and my goal is to make a self-published book of the entire first year.” said Freshman. “Besides that, I will continue to try to make people laugh. Hopefully it doesn’t get old too soon for my fans or myself.”
Aside from being well known in the community, The Bubble has received up to 724 likes on Instagram and even expanding into a small clothing line. Hats and t-shirts are currently being sold at Spyder Surf Shop.
“The fans of The Bubble are awesome.” Freshman said. “I think they appreciate my humor and the work that goes into these drawings. It’s funny because the people I poke fun at like it just as much as the people who are laughing at them.”
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