This TikToker has the golden recipe for viral meme art: buff cartoon characters

polygon.com:

Nobody arguably needs to see detailed line art depictingMonsters, Inc.’s Mike Wazowski with the muscles of a world-class powerlifter and a chin so chiseled it could cut a diamond, but that hasn’t stopped millions of people from wanting to.

Sam Barquin is a student and artist who has made a name for himself online by redrawing beloved cartoon characters as swole gym rats. Over time, he’s mastered the not-so-subtle craft of viral meme art. On platforms like TikTok, the simple gimmick has taken him far, with a single video amassing more than 33.6 million views. Polygon spoke to him about what brought him to this particular corner of the internet and what it’s been like to draw in the same style for so long. According to the artist, he’s slowly found his niche by tailoring it to trends new and old.

“I would definitely describe my account as sort of meme-y, you know, like meme art, and just drawing certain cartoon characters in different ways,” Barquin said in a call. “If someone asks, I say, ‘My current thing is just drawing cartoon characters, but handsome.’ And that usually doesn’t really have them asking too many questions.”

Replying to @Slushdoesart Bro was mewing for a century #art #artbybamuel #avatar #looksmaxx #mewing #aang

Barquin’s art is all at once hard to describe and immediately recognizable to those immersed in the vernacular and imagery of online humor. Each video plays out the same bit more or less, starting with some hand-drawn pen and ink art. As the recording progresses, we see a few snippets that feel like reading a very short comic. Regardless of the premise or character in each story, each video culminates by revealing a character redesign that depicts them with chiseled features and an overly buff physique.

For example, a video featuring characters from Avatar: The Last Airbender shows a scenario where Sokka and Katara discover Aang in the iceberg. Afterward, Sokka asks Aang what he’s been doing for 100 years. In response, Barquin’s art shows