Kowaiila by Shane Haddy
One of two characters created by Shane Haddy of Hints and Spices, from his "Study Tour" of making sofubis in Japan, and to be released as a sofubi vinyl figure at the coming 'Sofubi&Character Work Study Tour' Conclusion Exhibition @ Design Festa Gallery - launching February 8th … And today let's take a closer look at KOWAIILA - The Terror of Australia!
"I wanted to extend the ideology of the grant and blend some 'Australiana' into the mix. Like most of the world, when Japan thinks of Australia, they think of our animals. In my experiences, the number 1 animal Japanese people mention is the koala." ~mentioned Shane.
[I need me some Kowaiilas in my life…]
"'Kawaii' being 'cute' in Japanese and 'kowai' being 'scary'. Just a little play on words, with a whole lot of truth. Koalas are scary, they have huge claws, beady little eyes and sharp teeth. With that in mind, I decided on a koala with a 'drop bear' vibe. I have wanted to do something really Australian for some time and drop bears are perfect!" ~shares Shane (Read more from his blog-post)