All Posts tagged fiberglass

Colin Christian’s Hater Blocker 3000

The fiberglass fetish sculptures of Colin Christian are both awesome and intimidating. For Dragon*Con, Colin is debuting a smaller scale art multiple. Set for release on September 3rd, the 12-inch HB3K (Hater Blocker 3000) is limited to 10 pieces made of fiberglass, silicone and resin. I’m reminded of the Sour Harvest interview with filmmaker/collector Morgan Spurlock in which he said:

I kick myself everyday that I didn’t buy the Colin Christian sculpture at that Lit show where I bought my first piece. It was way out of my range, 12k I think they wanted. Today, you can’t even smell a piece by him for that.

Well, I haven’t seen a price on this piece (produced by Circus Posterus) yet, but odds seem good that you’ll be able to smell it. If you’re in Atlanta at the right time. This is super rad.

Vajazzling With Carlos Enriquez-Gonzalez

Like Madonna in her 1992 baseball flick, Carlos Enriquez-Gonzalez is in A League of Their Own. The pop star similarities end there, although you could make a case for an ally in fellow triple-named vajazzler Jennifer Love Hewitt. I’ve been following Carlos’ work for a couple years now, and where many artists ebb and burn out, Carlos keeps bringing it. And in case you don’t have eyeballs, he’s bringing a lot of vaginas.

Of his 2007, 13-inch fiberglass Vagina Brain Monster which was part of a 2008  Contemporary Art Phillips de Pury auction, Steve Agin wrote:

“For Mr. Gonzalez, a vagina represents passage in time and space and, the journey from one reality to another, possibly a more enlightened one.”

Color me enlightened. Of his 2009, 9-foot hand-painted fiberglass Magical Vagina, which sold at auction for $15,000, Carlos himself said:

“I intend the confrontation with the free spectator, give him something that invites him to reflect about the theme on how this feminine organ has been mistreated and denigrated, because the vagina can connect us with the most pure, powerful and mysterious forces of the universe, God present? The vagina has been wounded for a long time, ’skimmed blood’.”

Um, yes, exactly. Carlos’ latest 9-Foot Mother Lips Vagina Monster (shown at the top of this post) is also for the Phillips de Pury auction. I’d like to chat up the person who has the balls (or ovaries) and taste to buy this walking orifice that dwarfs them. Such an art collector is likely to be as interesting as the piece itself. Keep it coming, Carlos! Photos courtesy of the Mishka Bloglin and Carlos’ Flickr.

Fiberglass Eyezons from Killer Kaiju

What is this, the Mark Nagata blog??? The dude is unstoppable right now. We first got a preview of these fiberglass Eyezons at Kaiju Invades San Francisco. Another great collaboration between Mark Nagata and Matt Walker has resulted in ten 28″  hand-painted fiberglass Eyezons. This limited edition was created to coincide with the publication of the new book KILLER KAIJU MONSTERS by Ivan Vartanian. I saw the book briefly with my own eye(zon)s, and it looked interesting, though the initial reviews on Amazon are unfortunately lukewarm

Anyway, I’ve got nothing but love for the fiberglass Eyezons. If you’ve got love + $1,400 + shipping, you are encouraged to send your inquiry to monster [at] killerkaiju [dot] com and indicate  your first, second, and third choices of color schemes. P.S. I lazily ganked the picture above from SpankyStokes here! Thanx Spanx!

I’m in Love With Toykyo (And You Should Be Too)

'The Not So Happy Bird' by Parra — 2 editions of 25 porcelain sculptures

My personal experience of art toy collecting is evolving, and I recently stumbled upon a new reason to love Belgium. Some of you know I have a nichey affinity for Belgium’s contributions to post-punk/new wave music history. Now, I find myself fascinated by a cutting edge creative agency based in Ghent. Their name is Toykyo, which is a compound eggcorn [Editor's note: Eggheads feel free to correct my linguistic malapropism, see I did it again!] for two things I love: Toys and Tokyo. Aha, but Toykyo doesn’t limit themselves to toys! Based on the belief that “creativity and clarity are the keys to successful design,” the small company has created sculptures, murals, illustrations, installations, packaging and apparel for clients as diverse as Jean-Paul Gaultier and Adidas.

'Billy Jr.' by Bue, limited & hand-painted series, sculpted by Kaiser

I’d previously seen some of Bue’s custom toys and his illustration for The Ark. But it was while researching Toykyo’s new Not So Happy Birds (by Dutch designer Parra) that I realized these were the folks responsible for my current obsession with Darcel’s fiberglass. Naturally, I had to get in touch with Mathieu Van Damme immediately and find out all about Toykyo! This is the beginning of a beautiful love story. Click all the way through for wise words and inspiring imagery.

‘Mr Irony AKA The Rainboner’ handmade sculpture — edition of 9 pieces

JB: When did you get started, and how many people work for your agency?

MVD: We started in 2006 with two people:  Mathieu Van Damme & Benjamin Van Oost. We are now working with two freelance artists, pointdextr and Bue, as part of Toykyo.

'Dirty Hairy' print, T-shirt and pillows, limited edition by Bue

‘Don’t Worry Be Hairy’ – handmade pillows – edition of 25 by Bue

How did the collaborations with Parra come about?

We first did an expo back in 2006 with Parra. Then in 2007, we produced a limited sticker box that paved us the way for a long time…

Designed by Parra, sculpted by Kaiser

What are the challenges of bringing graphic design into 3 dimensions (in fiberglass)?

For me, it’s a natural evolution to bring graphic design into 3D sculptures. Our ambition is to take it even further and try to make furniture design with different artists in the future. A lot of graphic designers/artists never thought about how their artwork would look in 3D. We would like to go on on this path, so keep your eyes peeled because there are some new interesting projects in the making…

‘Moody’ character by Superdeux, sculpted by Kaiser

What do you call the 3D objects you produce?

We don’t really have a name for it, but we call it sculpture or art design objects. They are basically all hand made and a lot of work to produce in small runs, especially the 1-off big sculptures. We are also looking into making other objects like lamps, mirrors, furniture… in the future. We didn’t have a real goal when we started this. It just grew naturally out of passion. Before, we did a lot of screen printing and other stuff with artists. This was like a natural evolution for us.

‘Billy the Cone’ character by Bue, sculpted by Kaiser

Where do you see these art objects on the spectrum if you consider $20 million Jeff Koons sculptures on one end and $80 Dunnys on the other?

I really have no idea where we’ll be in the future. I guess the prices are very much related to the fame or recognition of the artist (number of expos, which galleries are picking it up…) Also the material that is used and the number of multiples…I think some items will definitely go up in price and others will not; same as in the art toy industry.

‘The Vader Project’ — custom Darth Vader helmets by Pointdextr & Kaiser

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Fresh Fiberglass From Darcel

New York goes to Paris. (And thankfully, it’s nothing like New York Goes to Work.) New York-based artist, Craig Redman, aka Darcel, has collaborated with awesomesauce French boutique, Colette, on an exhibit entitled: “And a miserable day to you too.”

His illustrated blog, Darcel Disappoints, chronicles one disappointing moment after another as the protagonist navigates his way through everyday life in downtown New York. From dull solitary moments to getting inappropriately drunk at crowded openings, Darcel casts a cynical eye (singular) on himself and the stuff that surrounds him. Art, shopping, eating, booze, aspirations and anxiety all fall victim to Darcel’s purview through his trusty (and rusty) monocle. Punctured with occasional moments of happiness, the blog’s visual approach is spare, but bright, and the small scenes elude to bigger stories and ideas.

I’ve been following Darcel’s blog where I often identify with his of-the-moment designs. (He had me at a cyclops in New York with woodgrain eyewear.) As part of his exhibit, he’s produced an edition of his signature character in fiberglass. There’s a fantastic 60-inch figure (edition of 1), or for about $1200, a 12-inch edition of 9 here. Those of us in a lower tax bracket will want to make due with a 3D keyring here, some great silkscreens or a plethora of product art. Check out the whole exhibit here. Click through for some great spectacled cyclops snaps and a little video, too.

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Neon Monster’s Valentine’s Day Coupon Code

If you’re dating, married to or secretly admiring someone a little quirky, eccentric or alternatively adorable, consider the gift of plastic, plush, paper or vinyl for Valentine’s Day this year. Neon Monster’s got toys, records and comics for your special someone. If your tastes lean toward the macabre, try a limited edition rotocast vinyl Specimen 129 by Jermaine Rogers ($60) a 2-foot long bloody Gloomy Bear claw that you can actually put your own arm inside ($50) or this big, dead drumstick from Argentinian collective, DOMA ($42). Need your cute and cuddly fix sans blood and gore? For you, we’ve saved a few Love Bunnies by Jeremyville ($29.95).

Whatever your pleasure, take 10% off the list price of anything in the store with the coupon code “XOXO” at checkout. Order today or you’ll be in the doghouse on V-day.

Obviously, we’re partial to pink all year round, but if you’re looking for some pink vinyl for Valentine’s Day, may we suggest:

• Daniel Johnston’s Jeremiah The Innocent 12″ in pink (limited to 150 pieces) – $120
• Anton Ginzburg’s 3″ Totem Doppelganger Set – $49.95
• Gary Baseman’s 7″ pink Hot Cha Cha Cha (limited to 500 pieces) – $70
• Bubi Au Young’s 8″ pink Treeson (limited to 500 pieces) – $85

Depending on when you read this post, you may still have a few more hours to enter our Twitter contest to win the above pair of 14-inch eco-friendly super-soft Neon Monster exclusive Mitch plushes. If you can’t wait or it’s too late, you can buy them for $75 here.

Neon Monster is proud to stock a full array of plush Sweet Meats by local artist, Lauren Venell. The vegetarian-friendly toys range in price from $18-50.

If you’re feeling like a baller this V-day, and you want to drop coin on some bling that isn’t ice (wow, did I just write that?), consider this gigantic fiberglass human-size Smorkin’ Labbit stool by Frank Kozik in an edition of only 50 pieces for a cool $1,250. For half the price, you can be even more exclusive with a ruby jewel-tone resin Psnail created for Art Basel by Neon Monster, Reuben Rude and Pretty in Plastic.

Don’t forget: discount code “XOXO” saves you 10% off at checkout. Happy Valentine’s Day.