The next release in our 20^th Anniversary Dunny Collection drops today exclusively on Kidrobot.com! The Kidrobot x Locknesters Puzzle Dunny 20″ Art Figure is an incredible new super sized design and celebration of the Dunny. We spoke to its creator, Fleet Hower, to see how he solved the puzzle of designing such a complex Dunny on such a large scale. 

Kidrobot: Hi Fleet! How did Locknesters come about? 

Fleet Hower: Locknesters are the product of a couple of interests of mine. When I was a kid, I was really into puzzles. Then, I grew up and went to architecture school. So, they’re kind of somewhere in the middle. 

Kidrobot: Tell us about your design process. 

Fleet Hower: I’ve always been interested in patterns and creating new patterns. They’re about the only thing I can draw. When I was a kid, I used to draw patterns on paper, and some would be based in lines, and some would be based in points, and some would be based in curves. And I was really curious about how you could draw different shapes and create a new pattern out of them. And it’s kind of a similar idea [with the Puzzle Dunny] where you’ve got these lines that are the divisions of the pieces, and then you’ve got this diamond pattern of small Dunnys. And the trick is to get them to work together. 

Kidrobot: Reflecting on its 20^th Anniversary, what does the Dunny mean to you? 

Fleet Hower: The Dunny is really an iconic figure, and it’s been a real pleasure to work on them in the past. There have been so many great artists that have done one. For me, I’m really excited about doing this 20-inch version. There aren’t many at that size, and I think it’ll be really special. 

Kidrobot: How does this 20-inch Dunny compare to your previous 8-inch ones? 

Fleet Hower: I’ve done three 8-inch versions: a black, a blue, and a pink version. They’re each five pieces. This 20-inch version is a whole new level of complexity, and it’s 36 pieces total. With the 8-inch versions, you could assemble them as if you were putting a three-dimensional jigsaw puzzle together. With the 20-inch version, because of the complexity of the pieces, there’s an internal bolt system to hold the figure together. 

Kidrobot: Was your approach different in designing for a larger scale? 

Fleet Hower: With the 8-inch versions, the idea was to keep the division lines of the pieces very simple and kind of mimic the curvature of the Dunny form. It’s kind of the opposite with this 20-inch, where there’s a real fascination with detail on the surface and this idea of packing as much detail in on the surface as I possibly could. That’s where two different scales of smaller Dunnys come in. 

Kidrobot: Tell us more about the surface detailing. 

Fleet Hower: So, there’s kind of a simple pattern; it’s this diagrid pattern of very small Dunnys combined with a little bit larger version. There’s 11 of the larger Dunnys across the surface, and they kind of create these two different scales of detail that’s on the surface. I’m not much of a painter; I can’t really draw, but what I can do is produce 3D models. And so, the way I bring detail to a figure is through surface manipulation. 

Kidrobot: Did you encounter any challenges along the way? 

Fleet Hower: Designing this 20-inch version definitely brought with it some challenges that weren’t present on the 8-inch Dunny. Most of that has to do with the increase in surface area. There’s a lot of room for experimentation on the surface and cramming as much detail on the surface as possible. 

There are a lot of ways to get creative when the Dunny is at this scale in the way you cut the pieces up. The challenge is really in getting the thing to hold together, figuring out how it’s not going to fall apart. And that’s where the internal bolt system really helped out. 

Kidrobot: How does your finishing process work?  

Fleet Hower: Something I’ve been interested in for a long time is the ability to produce and finish my own work. Once the basic pieces are made, they’re tumbled in a ceramic media for about a day. They come out of this process feeling very smooth, but they’re also pretty gunky and dirty, so they need to be cleaned up. 

I do this by tumbling them again, this time in a corn cob media, for another 10 to 12 hours. And they come out of the corn looking a lot better. They feel very smooth, and they have this kind of worn look that’s pretty unique. 

Kidrobot: Thank you for giving us insight into your work! 

Fleet Hower: It’s been a real pleasure to have the opportunity to design a 20-inch Dunny. It feels really special at this scale. I hope you like it. 

Order the 20th Anniversary Puzzle Dunny now!

The post Artist Q&A: Fleet Hower Decodes the 20th Anniversary Locknesters Puzzle Dunny 🧩 appeared first on Kidrobot Blog.

Tristan Eaton is an artist who needs no introduction, but we’ll give him one anyway. With Los Angeles roots, Tristan is an internationally renowned artist with work spanning from fine art canvases to large-scale murals. His work combines a powerful blend of pop culture, art history, and personal experience. And most importantly, he created the Dunny! Our infinitely reinvented art figure has been a platform for the world’s most groundbreaking artists, designers, and illustrators since its birth in 2004.

In honor of the Dunny’s 20th anniversary, Kidrobot has teamed up with Tristan once more to create a new 20th Anniversary Dunny Collection. The first release is his fantastic Still Life Dunny 8-inch Art Figure in sculpted vinyl. A visual autobiography in 3D form, the Still Life Dunny is a portrait of Tristan and a celebration of him as an artist and founder of the Dunny. Throughout this multifaceted design, you’ll find a treasure trove of elements representing everything from his love of anime and robot art to his skateboarding roots and lifelong pursuit of spray paint mastery. (The figures in this series are all named after MONTANA-CANS spray paint colors.) We caught up with Tristan at San Diego Comic-Con to ask him about his new Dunny, the cultural impact of the Dunny, and more.


Kidrobot: Hi Tristan! Tell us about your new Dunny.

Tristan Eaton: This year is the 20th anniversary of the Dunny, so that shows you how old I am. [Laughs.] To celebrate, we are doing a few special releases. So, this is the 8-inch Still Life Dunny… fully sculpted, soft vinyl. This toy is basically a self-portrait in objects. So, it’s like my life story, my family, my inspiration—all in one sculpture. And it has my motto, “Be kind, take no shit.” [Laughs.] And it has one of my dad’s toy soldiers, and the Welsh dragon, the respirator, and the little banana caps I use. And of course, it references drawing and skateboarding and all kinds of secret references about my life and who I am.

KR: The detail and work here is incredible.

Tristan Eaton: Shout out to Kelly Barfield at Kidrobot who did the sculpting. She really knocked it out of the park.

KR: How did the Dunny get created?

TE: I started designing toys for Fisher-Price when I was like 18 years old. One of my college instructors introduced me to someone there. I was sending drawings by fax machine from Kinko’s, and I was doing graffiti, and when I met Paul Budnitz, the founder of Kidrobot, Kidrobot was like both those worlds together—toy design and urban arts and graffiti. So, I was like, “Dude, I’m your guy!” and we started working together, so I did the Kidrobot logo. And then I designed the Dunny, and I was curating artists and getting everyone on board. And calling everyone, like “Hey, you want to make a toy? You want to make a toy?” And then we went to Hong Kong, and we’re talking to factories and all of that, and came back, and we did the big 20-inch Dunny exhibition, and it was like 5,000 people in the street. It blew up fast. And then next thing you know, Jay-Z’s wearing our T-shirts and Lindsay Lohan’s coming out with bags of stuff. It was crazy, man. It was wild.

KR: Do you have any favorite Dunnys?

TE: I like the blank ones. I like the flat-colored, sculpted pieces. To me, painting’s about color and sculpture’s about texture, so I like the detailed, sculpted ones. But I also really love the collection that was done with the Metropolitan Museum with Mondrian and Monet. That’s bonkers. But the Dunny being in the Museum of Modern Art now, this is wild. Like, you never thought it would go that far.

KR: Reflecting on the 20th anniversary of the Dunny, what stands out the most?

TE: The Dunny itself is interesting because it launched so many artists’ careers…the early series really put a lot of artists on the map and allowed them to launch their careers into exhibitions and their own toys they were designing, beyond the Dunny. And a lot of beautiful stories came out of that, but it also created a generation of art collectors who were collecting Dunnys and then went on to collect paintings and more. So, no other toy is like the Dunny because of that history and culture it created.

Kidrobot will reveal the rest of the 20th Anniversary Dunny Collection throughout the rest of 2024. You won’t want to miss it!

Grab your Still Life Dunny now!

The post Celebrating 20 Years of the Dunny with Tristan Eaton appeared first on Kidrobot Blog.

Set your alarms! 37 one-of-a-kind custom Dunnys by MP Gautheron DROP TOMORROW! Get early access on the Kidrobot App one hour before they drop on Kidrobot.com! 

Tomorrow, April 3rd

Early Access on Kidrobot App @ 12pm ET

Kidrobot.com Release (while/if supplies last) @ 1pm ET

Get the download and preview the full series below!

DOWNLOAD THE APP HERE

Kidrobot is proud to introduce the Flamboyant custom Dunny collection by MP Gautheron. This is our fifth collaboration with Gautheron and includes 37 all-new custom designs by the acclaimed French artist. From plexiglass jewels to intricate dot work, each one-of-a-kind piece is assembled and hand painted by Gautheron in her signature style. Check out our exclusive interview with the artist!

Kidrobot: What is the inspiration behind your new Flamboyant collection?  

KR: What does your artistic process look like for making these one-of-a-kind art pieces?  

MP: For this collection, I envisioned my pattern work in volume. I had to imagine my ellipses and dots in different layers of wood that stack properly to give a good dynamic to the whole piece. For this, I used a laser cutter, then assembled them and painted them with acrylics, several of which react to blacklight. 

KR: How long does it take you to create each one? 

MP: The entire creative process, from the research phase to the varnish layer, takes at least 3 or 4 days for an 8-inch Dunny. 

KR: You are so prolific! How do you stay so motivated? 

MP: I’m fortunate to have a job that is also my passion. I love my work; working on Dunnys is always exciting. I enjoy the research and sculpting phase, and the painting part—especially the dots—is very relaxing and hypnotic. My job is essential to my balance, and I always find motivation to imagine and create new things. 

KR: What are you working on right now? 

MP: I’m preparing for a solo exhibition in my city, Rennes, which will take place in June. I’ve decided to create monumental works, including a massive 1.80-meter-long skull entirely printed using 3D printers, which is a new and thrilling challenge for me. 

Shop the MP Gautheron x Kidrobot Flamboyant Dunny Collection at Kidrobot.com!

Don’t forget to download the Kidrobot App to get first access!

The post ⚡ALERT: MP Gautheron’s New Custom Dunny Series Drops Tomorrow! appeared first on Kidrobot Blog.

Need a little more Turtle Power in your life? Meet the artist behind the new TMNT GURU Art Figure: CHOGRIN! Like many kids in the ‘80s and ‘90s, CHOGRIN was mutated by the worldwide phenomenon known as Turtlemania. From the Eastman & Laird comics to the cartoon, toys, and live-action movies, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have inspired CHOGRIN as an artist and fueled his creativity over the years. We spoke to him in more detail about his art, influences, and favorite TMNT memories! 

Kidrobot: When did you first start working in vinyl? 

CHOGRIN: I had the opportunity to do my first vinyl toy (Guru del Toro) with Unruly Industries via Sideshow Collectibles in 2020. “Guru del Toro” is my tribute to one of my favorite filmmakers, Guillermo del Toro. I’ve been a toy collector since I was a kid, but it wasn’t until I was in college that I discovered and was inspired by the designer vinyl toy movement, when I got my copy of Paul Budnitz’ I AM PLASTIC. Since then, I’ve been inspired by artists like Frank Kozik, James Groman, Mark Nagata, Eric So, McBess, Tracy Tubera, KaNo, Urban Aztec, Tara McPherson, TOUMA, The Beast Brothers, David Igo, Klim Kozinevich, and many, many more. Back in 2014 I began experimenting with turning my artwork into 3D sculptures at art galleries, and it has been an addiction ever since. 

KR: What inspires you to create? 

C: It is always what I’m passionate about at the moment. I always like to pull inspiration from my personal life, my childhood, and the people around me. I’m also inspired by people who are passionate about what they do and are self-starters, like Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird. My biggest artistic influences would have to be Osamu Tezuka and Ub Iwerks. I also really enjoy all things Popeye and the works of Shotaro Ishinomori, Oswaldo Guayasamin, Al Columbia, Mike Mignola, Shigeru Mizuki, and Jorge R. Gutierrez. 

(CHOGRIN in his studio surrounded by his influences, which are like extensions of his brain)

KR: You’ve told us about your epic TMNT birthday party in 1990 where the Turtles showed up with pizza and cake! Do you have any other favorite TMNT memories? 

C: Too many! But here are four that come to mind: 

TMNT MEMORY 1: It was Halloween of 1990, and I dressed up as my favorite Turtle (Raphael). 

TMNT MEMORY 2: It was Christmas of 1990, and all of my gifts were TMNT-related. I was in TMNT heaven. 

TMNT MEMORY 3: My dad painted the turtles on my bedroom walls. My Turtle pajamas were pretty rad too. 

TMNT MEMORY 4: Perhaps one of my most memorable and influential TMNT memories was when I watched the 1990 (Jim Henson / Steve Barron) TMNT movie in the movie theater.  In the movie, after the turtles are defeated by The Foot and retreat to April’s farmhouse, there’s a montage sequence where April (Judith Hoag) draws the turtles. This part in the movie blew my mind and made me want to draw more. I wanted to be able to draw the turtles as good as her drawings in the movie. The actual drawings for the film were done by art director Karen Steward. For lack of better words, the turtles were key into mutating me into the artist I am today. Below is an example of one of those scenes from the movie, along with one of my first Turtle drawings. 

KR: What themes do you find yourself addressing in your work and have they changed over the years? 

C: As an illustrator, I like creating images that pop right away but also pull you in to look closer. All of my work is very character focused. Whether it is characters interacting with one another or focusing on just one character, I like designing images with strong silhouettes or that can be easily read from far away. Over the years my work has become more symmetrical and with more design elements surrounding the characters I illustrate.   

As a storyteller, I like to tell coming-of-age stories. Where a character must go through a journey of discovery and come out transformed by the end. This theme is inspired by my personal life and is part of my animated short film “Lucky Brave’s Sunshine.” 

KR: What are you working on right now? 

C: Currently I’m designing more toys that will be revealed later this year, including another one in my “Guru” series. I’m also writing more bilingual Children’s Books for Little Libros and showing my animated short film “Lucky Brave’s Sunshine” at multiple film festivals around the world. You can watch the trailer here. 

Check out the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TMNT GURU 8” Resin Art Figure by CHOGRIN, available now at Kidrobot.com! 

To keep up with CHOGRIN follow him Instagram @chogrin!

The post Guru in a Half Shell: Q&A with TMNT Figure Artist CHOGRIN!  appeared first on Kidrobot Blog.