YHWH toys by Francesco de Molfetta, Emilio Garcia, Marion Peck, KMDNZ, PlaSeeBo and Liz McGrath

The Mark Ryden-blessed YHWH Group Custom Toy Show stands apart in a sea of similarly intended toy art shows because of a) its thoughtfully curated artist roster and b) its somewhat conceptual, somewhat controversial nature. The former is pretty obvious: these aren’t the usual toy customizer suspects, but rather (for the most part) a pool of Ryden’s peers. When was the last time you saw the likes of Marion Peck or Liz McGrath or Anthony Ausgang customizing vinyl toys? Mark Ryden’s brother, the amazing KRK Ryden, created the piece below. It’s called “Yeah, Why” and it’s available for adoption here.

Mark Ryden's YHWH customized by KRK Ryden

Now, about the concept and the controversy. Before there was a pink vinyl YHWH toy (and then five subsequent colorways), there was a sculpture by Dave Pressler. Of course before THAT, there was an original oil painting by Mark Ryden. The timeline went something like this: oil painting (2000), toy creation (2006), and toy release (2009). The O.G. pink YHWH colorway was made in an edition of 2000 pieces and came in a beautiful box featuring Ryden’s art. Priced at $125 in the thick of the economic recession, YHWH did not instantly sell out.

YHWH sculpt by Dave Pressler

It’s a challenging piece. For one thing, the name is unpronounceable, and for another, well, a bunny totem with religious implications just wasn’t the typical monkey-yeti-spraycan of the late 2000s designer toy scene. Per Mark Ryden:

YHWH is the unpronounceable name of god. My YHWH represents the indefinable nature of the divine and its unspeakable mystery, which can be represented by anything from a burning bush to a three-eyed bunny totem. In creating my YHWH toy edition, I strove to elevate each and every individual figure from a mass produced piece of plastic to a magical object.

It took three years to produce the magical object, and in the end, the female companion figure hit the cutting room floor.

YHWH vinyl toy by Mark Ryden, produced by Necessaries Toy Foundation

What does a toy art gallery owner do with a surplus of $125+ vinyl bunny totems? It’s no secret that I disagree with the current idea that every new toy release equals new fodder for toy customizers. This is because I see the most successful toy art objects as being created by artists with very specific visions. To paint or sculpt over that vision just strikes me as disrespectful and/or presumptuous.

Mark Ryden's YHWH customized by Francesco de Molfetta

In this case, it’s kinda hard to argue when the originating artist is on board. Quoth Mark Ryden: “I very much look forward to seeing how each artist responds to the spiritual energies of their YHWHs.”

Mark Ryden's YHWH customized by Scott Hove

I was in the LA area last week, so I stopped in at TAG to see the show–and I’m glad I did. The customized YHWH toys–and a giant replica YHWH box by Mark Ryden himself–will be on display at Toy Art Gallery on Melrose through May 26th. The artwork is also available for purchase online now here.

Mark Ryden's YHWH customized by Julie B

Last February, Ninja and Yolandi of South African Zef Rap Rave band Die Antwoord graced our fair city of San Francisco. They came to play music and release a vinyl toy, which makes this pretty much the best opportunity ever to use the expression “rock out with your cock out.”

The duo debuted the Evil Boy toy in a customized white edition of 45 pieces at a signing and one-day art installation. (I was in attendance.) These initial figures sold out at $200 each, but now Upper Playground is releasing three additional colorways (“Red Hot Love,” “Black Out” and “Greeny”) in editions of 168, 216 and 96, respectively for $75 a piece.

The Red Hot Love Edition Evil Boy was made in an edition of 168.

Evil Boy is a 6-inch designer vinyl toy created by Die Antwoord and produced by Good Smile Company in China. The Evil Boy character may be based on the Tokoloshe (more on that here), and it’s available online now here. Click through to see pics of all three colorways. Gee, which one will Jeremy get?

[A big thank you to Delme for giving me the tip (but just the tip).]

The Black Out Edition Evil Boy was made in an edition of 216.

The Greeny Edition Evil Boy was made in an edition of 96.

Did you just blink twice and find yourself in a parallel universe where Ian Curtis is the Dark Knight and Siouxsie Sioux rocks bullet-proof bracelets? Unfortunately, no, but you are looking at the amazing artistic convergence of new wave and post-punk musicians with comic book superheroes.

These epic pairings are the handiwork of a Brazil-based graphic designer and illustrator called Butcher Billy. Mr. Billy depicts Morrissey (Smiths) as Superman, Robert Smith (The Cure) as Plastic Man, Johnny Lydon (Sex Pistols, Public Image Limited) as Firestorm, Ian Curtis (Joy Division) as Batman, Siouxsie Sioux (Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Creatures) as Wonder Woman, Billy Idol (Generation X) as Aquaman and probably my favorite–Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo) as The Flash.

The artist poses some rhetorical questions:

What makes a pop culture icon? Would it be the effect of their contribution to a cultural movement? Is it the way they impact the time and the generation they are targeting? Or just how their exposure constitutes a defining characteristic of a given society or era?

And to that I’ll add: Do we consider their impact on other art forms (like these Joy Division and Smiths albums as books in poster form!) as evidence of their enduring legacy?

Growing up in the 80s, Butcher Billy was influenced by “everything from Saturday morning cartoons on TV to the music coming from the radio.” He continues:

Ian Curtis or Johnny Rotten are as iconic to me as Superman or Batman. Real people or imaginary characters, the incorruptible ideals of perfect superheroes or the human flaws and desires sometimes so desperately depicted in song lyrics–all of those influences affect us to the point of defining our character and personality, career paths and life choices.

I unequivocally agree with that! These artists and their music defines me to this day.

Billy concludes: “The references [to which] we are exposed and specifically the ones we choose to absorb make us who we are. Who are your heroes?”

All of the above of course! Butcher Billy’s new wave and post-punk superheroes are available as affordable art prints ($20 for an 8×10), T-shirts, gadget skins and more in his online shop. (While you’re there…sad sack gamers may enjoy his 8-Bit Smiths project and Clockwork Orange aficionados might delight in imagining what if Nickelodeon was into Ultraviolence?)

Click through for the rest of the post-punk superheroes, which do not (yet) include, but (hint, hint for future series) count among their contemporaries (a few suggestions) Peter Murphy of Bauhaus, Lux Interior of The Cramps, Marc Almond of Soft Cell, Mark E. Smith of The Fall, Nina Hagen, Lydia Lunch, James Chance…

Street cred! Undead undead undead…

[Hat tip to Dangerous Minds!]

"Nothing is greater or less than us." (Culver City)

I was in LA over the weekend. Here’s five snaps of stencil and sticker art that caught my eye.

Will Ferrell Cat (Hanksy) and Catman (Culver City)

"Stay weird forever. No love for normals." (Culver City)

Catman (Culver City)

"I was involved in something significant." (Venice Beach)

This past weekend, Camille Rose Garcia gave an artist talk at San Francisco’s Walt Disney Family Museum. The chat coincided with Down the Rabbit Hole, a new exhibition of over 40 original concept artworks and murals Garcia created for the 2010 HarperCollins edition of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

I’m not typically one to purchase multiple iterations of Disney classics, but Garcia’s Alice marked the 2nd artist edition Alice in Wonderland book I’ve bought this year. (For something different and yet not necessarily dissimilar, take a look at Yayoi Kusama’s delightfully dotty Wonderland here.)

Venturing Down the Rabbit Hole with Camille Rose Garcia at the Disney Museum was a perfect match. A frequent attendee at Disneyland in her youth, Garcia’s work often expresses the polarity between The Happiest Place on Earth (Disneyland) and The Saddest Place on Earth (Everywhere Else). Tere Romo curated the exhibition and also mediated the artist talk. Alas, I have only been to Florida’s Disney World, and not California’s Disneyland. Whereas the former is a popular East Coast family vacation spot, the latter seems akin to a religious experience for my West Coast friends. (If anyone wants to sponsor me on a missionary trip to Disneyland, clickety-click here.)

While Garcia also illustrated an edition of Disney’s Snow White, it’s clear she had a special connection to Alice. During the chat, Garcia talked about how unusual it would have been in the late 1800s to have a character like Alice: a strong female hero-child who also questioned authority. Garcia mentioned being captivated by Lewis Carroll’s dreamlike, surrealist prose that seemed to get at the stranger examples of our reality. Like Carroll’s books, Garcia’s artistic universe is filled with symbolic storytelling and non-linear narratives.

I took some notes during the Q&A, and this was one of my favorites. When asked how she went from being a great artist to a great artist who is also known, Camille Rose Garcia replied: “Ball’s out persistence!” And then: “If I get rejected from anything, I just pretend people are crazy.” Love it!

I love when artists use their canvases to critique and communicate about our world. Garcia talked about the difficulties of reconciling life in a capitalist society with the desire to live sustainably. I even raised my hand to ask a question. (And no, it wasn’t “Why is a raven like a writer’s desk?”) From her sharp critique of “Pharmaceuticools” in 2004 to the altered states of Wonderland, I wondered about the drug culture themes in her work. She spoke openly about her belief that Big Pharma isn’t here to help us get better (but rather to create lifelong addicts and paying customers) and recommended reading Robert Whitaker’s Anatomy of an Epidemic. With mental illness on the rise, maybe Crown Publishing Group will release an artist edition of the book, complete with illustrations by Camille Rose Garcia! (A drug art blogger can dream!) For the trippier part of the drug inquiry–think ‘shrooms– pick up the latest Juxtapoz.)

Down the Rabbit Hole at the Disney Family Museum is open through November 3rd, and you should definitely go see the amazing drippy, watercolor work on the purple walls! Garcia returns this Fall for additional related events. (Check the calendar.) Special jewels and baubles featuring Camille Rose Garcia’s Alice in Wonderland artwork are now available at the Disney store, and they accept phone orders. (Details here.)

“I’m sorry I spraypainted a gigantic penis on your garage door, but one day when I’m a famous graffiti artist it will be worth so much money that you will never have to work another day.”

I love it! It’s the narcissist’s perfect apology: Say ‘I’m sorry,’ but quickly re-inflate the ego with some well-placed bravado.

That interplay of apology and justification is at the heart of San Francisco artist David Fullarton‘s Apologies series. I’ve written about Fullarton previously, and I was lucky that he swam across the bridge to Oakland’s own The Compound gallery. His solo show I Can’t Apologize Enough, which opened this past weekend, is made up of more than 35 mixed media apologies, some larger work, a new mural, letterpress editions and an Apologize Here ‘audience participation area.’

One of my favorite things about this work is  it’s not “there’s something for everyone” type of art. It’s specific. David Fullarton’s individual Apologies pieces may not strike a chord with most folks, but there’s one person (at least) out there who’ll feel totally validated and extremely understood by each piece. If you’ve ever felt that way about an artwork, you know it’s better than broad strokes. Maybe it describes you or someone you knew. Perhaps it jogs an old memory of this crazy thing that happened that one time. I guess I’ve met  many quirky people and I’ve seen some wacky things because I was walking around The Compound laughing knowingly.

I picked up a piece (scroll down for it), and I’m still laughing. Laughter is A Good Thing, so I chatted up Mr. Fullarton to see if he agreed. Read on for our interview. David Fullarton’s I Can’t Apologize Enough runs through June 9th at The Compound gallery in Oakland. There are more original Apologies by David Fullarton available (and affordable) online here!

JB: What brought you from Scotland to San Francisco in 1995?
DF: My wife brought me. She was born and raised in San Diego, but had moved to London in the late 80s. We met working at the same place in Scotland, and she suffered through three Glasgow winters before demanding that we move somewhere with a more clement climate. The choice was London or San Francisco, which isn’t really a choice as far as I’m concerned. So we moved to SF in 1995.

An exclusive look into David Fullarton's notebooks!

What inspired you to start apologizing through art?
I started working on this series in 2011 because I was kind of in the artistic doldrums, and I wanted something to inspire me and help me focus. I’d become very interested in drawing portraits from existing photographs and I’ve always used text in my work, so it all just kind of fell into place. I thought up a couple of apologies in the shower one morning, and then I just starting coming up with more and more and writing them all down, and I got really excited about the whole thing and never looked back. I’ve kind of post-rationalized that a lot of my interest in the apologies came from the difference between UK and US cultures. In the UK, people are constantly apologizing for everything, and here no one feels the need to apologize for anything. But really, it’s just an exploration into human nature and, formally, into the relationship between words and images.

Do you tend to come up with the face or the apology first when creating a new piece?
Always the apologies. I have a little notebook where I write all the apologies down, and then I leave them there for a while and go back and choose the ones I really like. I have a ton of face pictures on my computer that I’ve found online (usually on random searches through Flickr), and I try and ‘match’ a face to the apology. I try and only use people’s amateur snapshots as the basis of the portraits and stay away from ‘proper’ photographers, although sometimes it’s hard to tell online. [editor's note: That's what Shepard Fairey said!]

Does the pairing of portrait and apology ever suggest a more evolved “character” that may make a future appearance (and another apology)?
I hope they all suggest a more evolved character, but no, there will be no further appearances. They’re always one-offs. I do love the idea that you can imply a whole story or series of events from just a short phrase and a visual, and that’s been a common theme throughout my work–not just in the apologies. I like it when it seems like you’ve just dropped into the middle of an ongoing event or short story. And I like it that it’s the viewer’s imagination that fills in the events both before and after the artworks ‘snapshot’ moment.

Can you describe how you keep track of your ideas and the elements in your works? (For instance, I’m imagining a sketchbook, a notebook, a shoebox full of paper swatches and type treatments…)
You imagination is very good! I have buttloads of notebooks and sketchbooks full of random scribblings, and I also have boxes and drawers full of old pieces of paper, postcards, books, cut out images, letters and stuff I’ve found in the street. It’s not at all organized, but I find that when I dig through it all and re-discover forgotten ‘treasures,’ it’s pretty inspiring.

These apologies are being offered as an after-the-fact explanation/excuse. Why is it so hard to communicate our needs in the actual moment?
I think for most of us, when we do something wrong, it’s pretty hard to admit it, especially right at the moment in question. We’re often embarrassed and feel awkward or ashamed, which can manifest itself as a kind of defensive anger. Later, when we’ve calmed down and rationalized what we did, it’s easier to admit that we were wrong–but we tend also to have come up with some self-justification or excuse by then. Hence the structure of many of these apologies is “I’m sorry about blah blah, BUT….” It raises the question of what is the point of an apology? Is it to genuinely repent in front of the offended party, or is it to make the apologists feel better about themselves and what they did?

If you hit a parked car and made a very slightly perceptible dent, but no one saw you do it, would you leave an apology note?
I’ve done it. No note was left. I’m kind of ashamed to say it, but if I’m honest and I find myself in that situation again I’m pretty sure there will still be no note. I’m a pretty horrid person, really.

How will you know when the Apologies body of work is complete?
I’ve been wondering that myself! I imagine it’ll be like finishing an individual piece–I’ll just kind of instinctively know I’m done. I thought I might be done after the show at The Compound. But then I thought of an apology that I really liked just the other day, and wished I could have drawn it up and put it on the wall, so I think they’re going to keep on coming for a while yet.

Yay! Do you like making art that makes people laugh?
I have a kind of complex relationship with the humor. Yes I like it that people laugh at my work, but I hope that the humor comes from a certain honesty and insight into our shared humanity and our common foibles and flaws, so I hope that it’s not just funny. Humor, and particularly a kind of self-depreciating dark humor, is pretty much genetically pre-programmed in the Scottish people, so it’s gratifying to see people in such a vastly different environment appreciating and enjoying the tone of these pieces. I know that for many people, the fact that something is humorous means that it shouldn’t be taken seriously as ‘Art,’ but I personally get pretty embarrassed by the almost vulgar seriousness that attaches itself to so much Contemporary Art, especially since a great deal of it seems, under closer examination, to ultimately be so unsubstantial.

Who are some artists you follow?
Artists who’s work I enjoy include: Rauschenberg, Twombly, Basquiat, Raymond Pettibon, Martin Kippenberger, Ray Johnson, Richard Prince, Simon Evans, David Shrigley, Tucker Nichols, Eric Yahnker, Per Dybvig…

exclusive look inside David Fullarton's notebook

What do you do when you’re not apologizing?
My day job is freelance copywriting, and I occasionally get bits and bobs of illustration work. Non-professionally, I’m a Dad, which means I spend a lot of time at Little League games and soccer practice, generally doing family stuff and trying to get my offspring to apologize. That doesn’t leave a ton of spare time, so most of it is spent trying to make art, although my other twin passions are cycling and home brewing (and consuming) beer.

Thanks David! Go see I Can’t Apologize Enough at The Compound now through June 9th!

Question: What do professional wrestling personality, Hulk Hogan, and Mad Men actress, Elisabeth Moss, have in common?
Answer: The 1991 sci-fi comedy bomb, Suburban Commando!

Clearly someone realized that this exchange between the pre-reality-TV wrestler and the pre-Peggy-Olson actress shouldn’t die on a VHS tape in somebody’s basement. Thus, the Internet gives us these great gifs of a cat in a tree, a little girl flying through the air and Hulk Hogan to the rescue. EPIC!

If these animated gifs aren’t animating in your browser, that’s a damn shame, and I recommend going the extra mile to open them in a new tab or a new browser. Because they are that funny. At least I think they are. And I needed a laugh.

Click through for a bonus animated gif that connects to this story because Elisabeth Moss stars on Mad Men alongside Alison Brie. P.S. If you happen to know why some animated gifs automatically animate (below) vs. others that don’t (above), please leave a comment and explain it to me–it drives me nuts!

What a wonderful and whimsical meeting of minds! Artist and animator Hine Mizushima [previously] paired up with They Might Be Giants on a video mashup for TMBG’s new album, Nanobots. Mizushima deftly connects six separate short songs in just under three minutes. Entitled Insect Hospital+, the video features ”Hive Mind,” “Decision Makers,” “Nouns,” “There,” “Insect Hospital” and “Tick.”

Sweet! You know what would supersize this collab? Hine Mizushima x Felt Mistress stitch kitsch bugs x They Might Be Giants x Pete Fowler x Clinic video. Just sayin’.

I don’t have a lot of love for bugs OR hospitals, but make ‘em mini and throw in some letter forms and keyboard keys, and I’m a believer.

They Might Be Giants’ new album Nanobots is available on vinyl, CD or download direct from the band here.

Hooray! After yesterday’s indulgent post on the complexities of cosmic Barbie, this feels like a nice balance.

I’ve written before (here and here) about Genís Carreras‘ great Philographics project, and third time’s a charm. Through colorful, minimalist graphic design and tight text, Carreras distilled deep philosophies into accessible information. What began as a student project with 24 posters became 95 beautifully illustrated philosophic theories or “isms.” Two years and six months after undertaking the self-imposed assignment, the London-based designer has emerged from his studio with a glorious visual dictionary of philosophy.

Previously available only as individual posters, Philographics is now being offered as a box of 95 postcards and a hardcover book.

Philographics: Big Ideas in Simple Shapes is currently at more than double its Kickstarter goal of £15,000, which means the project will be funded! A pledge is now a purchase, so if you fancy the idea of learning about philosophy while looking at lovely design, show your support here. (I just did.) Congrats Genís!

Real Life Barbie Doll, Valeria Lukyanova

On Monday, we took a look at the “controversial” Mexico Barbie doll and discovered that the media’s response was mostly overblown and somewhat manipulated. Today, we head to the Ukraine to meet Valeria Lukyanova, a “living Barbie doll” who is mostly manipulated and somewhat overblown.

At press time, Lukyanova has 788K Facebook fans who seem to use her timeline to debate whether she is, in fact, “real.” Tabloids tracked the twenty-something’s origins to Tiraspol, Transnistria and put her current whereabouts in Odessa, Ukraine. With that measure of “realness” satisfied, the discussion turns to plastic surgery vs. Photoshop. Lukyanova claims to have gone under the knife just once to have her breasts enlarged. The rest of her physique (as seen above) is the result of fitness, fasting, Photoshop and “prana” (but more on that last one later).

It was during my investigation into Mattel’s best practices regarding Barbie Dolls of the World that I found out about this fascinating addition to my Real Life Toy Collection. Valeria Lukyanova is not alone. There are OTHER Russian women who choose to take on the appearance of Barbie dolls, plus a thriving community of men, women and trolls (known in this crowd as “insekts”) who adore, explore and/or abhor them. Lukyanova says she modeled herself after the perfect plaything that she collected as a child. So with the questions of WHY and PLASTIC OR PHOTOSHOP answered, what’s left to talk about here?

EVERYTHING ACTUALLY!

The more I dug into Lukyanova’s story, the more I realized that the initial inquiry wasn’t all that interesting. Why go to great lengths debating her “realness” when the gold exists in how UNREAL she is? Here’s the Cliff Notes: Valeria Lukyanova is an asexual extreme vegetarian Barbie doll who uses astral projection to improve the world. She also has a master’s degree in architecture.

But it’s really much better in her own words:

On time travel: “I teach people to leave their physical body and travel in the endless expanses of the universe.”

On parenthood: “I don’t feel the desire and the capacity to be a mother. I’m from another universe. There, everyone is asexual—in our dimension there’s no such thing as children.”

On sex: “I’m not interested in this topic. Either you are here or you enjoy the human pleasures. I do not have animal urges. Some people enjoy eating the most, some having sex. I will say one thing—the less you make this so-called love, the better.”

By far, my favorite Lukyanova soundbite involves her dietary discipline: “I’ve been on a liquid diet for a year now. In recent weeks I have not been hungry at all; I’m hoping it’s the final stage before I can subsist on air and light alone.”

Can’t you kinda just hear Bjork saying that last bit?

A fluffy tuxedo cat? This doll is a witch! I watched this one video where Lukyanova frames the whole Barbie thing as a way of getting noticed as a pop singer. While I’ve got no interest in hearing any of that, I have much love for the Google-translated spiritual doctrines she writes on her blog. Here we get a glimpse of an entirely different side of Lukyanova. In fact, in this arena, she’s known as “Amatue,” the “real cosmic name” that came to her while meditating. This is where our journey must now end. But rest assured that America’s E! or TLC (“the learning channel”) networks are all over this kooky cash cow!

Bonus! Can’t get enough living dolls? Meet Anastasiya Shpagina (above), a living doll who spread her wings and found out that it’s fucking hard to be a fairy in Odessa.