What's Happening In The Art & Toy World (March/13/2011)

WEEKEND-ROUNDUP: March 11th saw Japan experience an earthquake measuring 9 on the ricter-scale (new measurement) as well a tsunami of devastatingly epic proportions sweeping thru the coastal town of Sendai. And while I have blogged my impressions of the event, I had also posted a trio of initiatives from the toy and art community focusing on relief efforts: Kaiju For Japan organized by Troy Stith, #PrayForJapan artshow from Sweet Streets, and Shin Tanaka's download a papercraft and donate initiatives. Do feel free to contact me with information about your initiatives with regards to relief for Japan. The impending Nuclear-issue is not going to let up anytime soon too.

Surprisingly, I cover a whole lot of "events" on the blog, most times of a cursory promotional-nature (Promote, but folks do not ever come back with launch day snaps) and sometimes whatever catches my fancy in my inbox. Regardless, I am actually always interested to catch these show, but alas, I am thankful I can depend on the internet to be sated… sometimes…

This week's event feature include: Dem Bonez: The Reconstruction, Mini Tea Tour 2011 in Berlin, Alien Nation, Soft Plush show @ mph, Lyric Group Show and Ken Keirns' Alone With Ghosts. We also saw a slew of WIPs for the "Monsters & Misfits" show in Tomenosuke Japan in April.

Our friends from Indonesia is also having a couple of launches, first one is Thudnerpanda's Wild Things show, and subsequently March 26th's Goji The Dino Launch Show in Lou Belle Shop, Bandung. Congrats guys! Wish I was there!

This weekend saw the launch of the 2-day Jakarta 7th Toys & Comics Fair, and TOYSREVIL attempted coverage with snaps via the wonderful invention of "Twitter", and of couse Twitpics! Although only barely an hour away from Jakarta, I had a chance to post about Plastic Culture and a look at ToasterBoys. Although I did not make the event (and get to meet Linda Le aka Vampy), I look at the event snaps with horrid crowds, and I say a little thanks under my breathe for not braving the insanity! But I sure as heck missed out on my buddies from Bandung with their goodies tho! (Crossing my fingers for a "recap" this week ;p)

With my Stroke last year at the end of 2010, I had quite a few articles pending posting, and I aim to finish them all! The previous weeks saw my coverage of my trip to Jakarta coming to a close, then the next coupla weeks will see me revisiting y time in Thailand for CLEA. Posted so far this week werePostcards by Patricio Oliver, my "loot" from Thai Designers and Flea Market Hunt, as well a self-indulgent look at the TOYSREVIL display booth, Prints and Postcards and a print image that never was.


Dragatomi offers up a Preview page for the custom Symbiotes for show at the coming March 12th event "For the Love of Vinyl", as curated by Denise Cortez. The show features works from 25 artists from all over the world, and from the images previewed on the page, they look pretty swell. Above is a video of J*RYU's custom done for the show, titled "I Waited Here For You..But You Never Came" (also check out his Flickr for the making-of stills).



ThreeA Toys representing at the Bandai booth in Hong Kong, complete with robot and humanoid toy figures, alongside a painting of a Zaku. All images by 3A-forumer "gentian" and spotted on Gimbat's FB. In a relatively short span of slightly over two years, they've made enough toys to helm a booth space, innit? Yes, let's not forget WonderFest (Winter) too.


Rabbits in all manner of shapes, colors and mediums in the INHLE show curated by Greg Simkims, with the sole event-image above swiped from Luke Chueh's twitter. All posted below are artwork snaps from Gallery1988 blog (who no longer does dedicated artshow-blogs, no?), as well work is available for purchase on nineteeneightyeight.com.




Remember Michael Lau's December show at Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay-based Times Square? I thought so LOL ~ regardless, the folks at MOODit\\ Associated Brains makes sure folks have a lasting memorable event in their toy-lurving minds, with this video look at the behind-the-scenes look into the construction and installation process behind his “CRAZYX’MAS” exhibition (Via HypeBeast).