Interview with Andrew Bell (Part One)
In anticipation of Andrew Bell's upcoming appearance as 'Guest' for the August Singapore Toy, Games and Comic-Con, TOYSREVIL has interviewed him for a two-part extravaganza, with this Part One focusing on who Andrew is, what he does, and a look at his well recognized O-No-Sushi toys and his brand new O-No-Sahshimi! Have a read, get to know the designer, and stay tuned to Part Two - when we ask him about Androids!
TOYSREVIL: Let's start at the beginning of it all, shall we? Do share with us 'Who Is Andrew Bell'? And What Does Andrew Bell Do?
ANDREW BELL: I am an artist and designer living and working in New York City. I work primarily on illustration, sculpture, painting and toy design.
TOYSREVIL: I remember the first time interviewing you online was for the Vader Project in 2007! How has things been then? A state of artist evolution? Or doing your "thing" regardless of market desires?
ANDREW BELL: Things have been very busy since then! I have had a number of art shows, as well as participated in quite a few group shows and exhibitions. I continue to focus primarily on my own work and what I want to do with it, without worrying too much about what people think or what might sell. Recently I have had the opportunity to work with Google on some Android projects, that was a good chance to evolve my own aesthetics to enhance an existing property.
["Love Is The End" soloshow @ Rotofugi circa March 2010 /
39 x images in slideshow above / Click for full-screening viewing]
TOYSREVIL: How would you describe your "style"?
ANDREW BELL: I find it hard to describe myself as I feel I have various distinct style, but I have had numerous people describe my work to me as "creepy-cute".
TOYSREVIL: What do you do day-to-day these days? Give us a rough daily-timeline from 12midnight to 12midnight the next day! What happens in the Day-of-the-Life-of-Andrew-Bell?
ANDREW BELL: Perhaps it is easier to start in the morning? I get up somewhere around 9am, make some tea, eat some breakfast, check e-mail and goof off on the internet a bit while my brain boots up. I don't function well creatively during the day, so I use the daytime to do things such as work on print runs, packing or shipping items, running errands such as buying art supplies or going to meetings.
If I have tight deadlines I will work on paintings or sculptures in my studio during the day, but I usually can't start any real artwork until the late afternoon or early evening. I spend the evening hours working on toy designs, illustrations, paintings.
Lately I have been spending more of those evening hours trying to catch up on e-mails and project management! I usually work until 2 or 3am and then head to bed. Somewhere in there I manage to eat and shower, it's not a very exciting life!
["Mahakala" Misfortune Cat-custom]
TOYSREVIL: You are as well known for your 3-dimensional work, as you are involved in your 2-dimensional drawings - is there any particular preference to either? Push comes to shove, which medium would you ultimately choose "at the end"?
ANDREW BELL: I was doing 3D computer graphics before I really fell in love with drawing, so in a way I have everything backwards! 2D is much more immediate and accessible, all you need is a pencil and paper. I suppose if I had to choose one it would be 2D for its ease of access, however I would be very upset if I could no longer do 3-Dimensional work. I love the idea of having a real, tangible object at the end of the day.
["Minor Heart Attack" original sculpt]
TOYSREVIL: What influences and inspires you? Who are your "design heroes"?
ANDREW BELL: I am inspired and influenced by the world around me, current events, living in New York City, my friends and contemporary artists, and most of all whatever my current emotional state happens to be. I enjoy the work of too many artists to list, but I don't idolize any of them as heroes. They're just normal people doing what they love or need to do!
[Custom Rayola for 'Shades of Ray']
TOYSREVIL: Creations seen in your personal website www.creaturesinmyhead.com all seem to have a overt streak of sadness (if not suicidal) - why is that? Even your O-No-Sushis and Sashimi's look saddened to be devoured! LOL
ANDREW BELL: I am usually a relaxed and happy person on the outside, I think that is partly because I can express a lot of my other emotions through my artwork so I don't have to hold on to those sad and dark feelings personally. I also think life in general can be very sad when you really think about it.
We are surrounded by death, destruction, poverty, sadness, and there is not much we can do to change things. Media and modern life do their best to gloss over the worst of it and force us to focus on unimportant things such as celebrities and wealth. It's important to acknowledge that sadness, even in a cute way, so that we can accept our own places in life and try to make the best of what we have.
TOYSREVIL: Your design style is very recognizable - most prominently thru your O-No-Sushi and the most rcent O-No-Sashimi (production toys) and your customs and sculpts for show - is this a deliberate instance Or has it been a tough road to continue such a design stance?
ANDREW BELL: I don't think about it much really! After drawing daily for many years I developed a visual language and way of approaching things that I suppose became my "style", but it is not something I have actively worked on or made changes to accommodate. I approach each project differently depending on the context, materials and subject, adjusting the elements of my style accordingly.
TOYSREVIL: We folks in Asia love food, and the existence of O-No-Sushi tugged at our heartstrings, and now with O-No-Sashimi? How did the food/toy-connection come about? What made you want to design raw fish unto toys?
ANDREW BELL: I love food as well! I also eat meat, and the truth of where much of my food comes from and how it is handled is not lost on me. It's not always easy to think about, but by illustrating it in a fun and colorful way I might get more people to consider the world around them in a slightly different light.
[Andrew's booth @ San Diego Comic-Con 2011]
LINKABLES:
Andrew Bell @ www.creaturesinmyhead.com
Andrew Bell for DeadZebra
Andrew Bell on Twitter
TOYSREVIL: Let's start at the beginning of it all, shall we? Do share with us 'Who Is Andrew Bell'? And What Does Andrew Bell Do?
ANDREW BELL: I am an artist and designer living and working in New York City. I work primarily on illustration, sculpture, painting and toy design.
TOYSREVIL: I remember the first time interviewing you online was for the Vader Project in 2007! How has things been then? A state of artist evolution? Or doing your "thing" regardless of market desires?
ANDREW BELL: Things have been very busy since then! I have had a number of art shows, as well as participated in quite a few group shows and exhibitions. I continue to focus primarily on my own work and what I want to do with it, without worrying too much about what people think or what might sell. Recently I have had the opportunity to work with Google on some Android projects, that was a good chance to evolve my own aesthetics to enhance an existing property.
["Love Is The End" soloshow @ Rotofugi circa March 2010 /
39 x images in slideshow above / Click for full-screening viewing]
TOYSREVIL: How would you describe your "style"?
ANDREW BELL: I find it hard to describe myself as I feel I have various distinct style, but I have had numerous people describe my work to me as "creepy-cute".
TOYSREVIL: What do you do day-to-day these days? Give us a rough daily-timeline from 12midnight to 12midnight the next day! What happens in the Day-of-the-Life-of-Andrew-Bell?
ANDREW BELL: Perhaps it is easier to start in the morning? I get up somewhere around 9am, make some tea, eat some breakfast, check e-mail and goof off on the internet a bit while my brain boots up. I don't function well creatively during the day, so I use the daytime to do things such as work on print runs, packing or shipping items, running errands such as buying art supplies or going to meetings.
If I have tight deadlines I will work on paintings or sculptures in my studio during the day, but I usually can't start any real artwork until the late afternoon or early evening. I spend the evening hours working on toy designs, illustrations, paintings.
Lately I have been spending more of those evening hours trying to catch up on e-mails and project management! I usually work until 2 or 3am and then head to bed. Somewhere in there I manage to eat and shower, it's not a very exciting life!
["Mahakala" Misfortune Cat-custom]
TOYSREVIL: You are as well known for your 3-dimensional work, as you are involved in your 2-dimensional drawings - is there any particular preference to either? Push comes to shove, which medium would you ultimately choose "at the end"?
ANDREW BELL: I was doing 3D computer graphics before I really fell in love with drawing, so in a way I have everything backwards! 2D is much more immediate and accessible, all you need is a pencil and paper. I suppose if I had to choose one it would be 2D for its ease of access, however I would be very upset if I could no longer do 3-Dimensional work. I love the idea of having a real, tangible object at the end of the day.
["Minor Heart Attack" original sculpt]
TOYSREVIL: What influences and inspires you? Who are your "design heroes"?
ANDREW BELL: I am inspired and influenced by the world around me, current events, living in New York City, my friends and contemporary artists, and most of all whatever my current emotional state happens to be. I enjoy the work of too many artists to list, but I don't idolize any of them as heroes. They're just normal people doing what they love or need to do!
[Custom Rayola for 'Shades of Ray']
TOYSREVIL: Creations seen in your personal website www.creaturesinmyhead.com all seem to have a overt streak of sadness (if not suicidal) - why is that? Even your O-No-Sushis and Sashimi's look saddened to be devoured! LOL
ANDREW BELL: I am usually a relaxed and happy person on the outside, I think that is partly because I can express a lot of my other emotions through my artwork so I don't have to hold on to those sad and dark feelings personally. I also think life in general can be very sad when you really think about it.
We are surrounded by death, destruction, poverty, sadness, and there is not much we can do to change things. Media and modern life do their best to gloss over the worst of it and force us to focus on unimportant things such as celebrities and wealth. It's important to acknowledge that sadness, even in a cute way, so that we can accept our own places in life and try to make the best of what we have.
TOYSREVIL: Your design style is very recognizable - most prominently thru your O-No-Sushi and the most rcent O-No-Sashimi (production toys) and your customs and sculpts for show - is this a deliberate instance Or has it been a tough road to continue such a design stance?
ANDREW BELL: I don't think about it much really! After drawing daily for many years I developed a visual language and way of approaching things that I suppose became my "style", but it is not something I have actively worked on or made changes to accommodate. I approach each project differently depending on the context, materials and subject, adjusting the elements of my style accordingly.
TOYSREVIL: We folks in Asia love food, and the existence of O-No-Sushi tugged at our heartstrings, and now with O-No-Sashimi? How did the food/toy-connection come about? What made you want to design raw fish unto toys?
ANDREW BELL: I love food as well! I also eat meat, and the truth of where much of my food comes from and how it is handled is not lost on me. It's not always easy to think about, but by illustrating it in a fun and colorful way I might get more people to consider the world around them in a slightly different light.
[Andrew's booth @ San Diego Comic-Con 2011]
LINKABLES:
Andrew Bell @ www.creaturesinmyhead.com
Andrew Bell for DeadZebra
Andrew Bell on Twitter
