« August 2019 | Main | October 2019 »
Sep 30, 2019
Tenacious Toys at NYCC: Exclusive Empty Wolf Blue by Kuro x J.T Studio
As part of it's NYCC release schedule, Tenacious Toys will offer several exclusives including the Empty Wolf Blue by Kuro x J.T Studio. The shop's first J.T Studio exclusive feels tailor-made from their signature blue to the wolf which reminds us of their dog mascot. Limited to 100 pieces, the Empty Wolf Blue figures (7" long) will be available from the Tenacious Toys booth [#780] for $99 each. This may be one of the last new vinyl releases from J.T as he is re-focusing efforts on his 1/6 figures and moving away from vinyl.
DKE at NYCC: Vintage Gold by Lou Pimentel
DKE Toys has curated a large selection of releases of indie art toys for NYCC with their signature focus on retro-style 3.75" art action figures. For 2019, Lou Pimentel follows last year's Vintage Gold project with a new selection of popular movie characters.
Featuring 20 different characters, each figure features his original watercolor portrait of the character on a backing board and a blistered vintage action figure of the character. Vintage Gold offers Pimentel's original art in a fun, novel approach. This year's selection includes Rick Hunter, Indiana Jones, Magnum PI, Doc Brown and more. The Vintage Gold figures will be available for $165 each. Be sure to visit the DKE booth [#575] early for the best selection.
Tristan Eaton x Kidrobot — 'New Money' Metal 5" Dunny (10.4)
It's been 16 or so years, since Tristan Eaton created the Dunny for Kidrobot, igniting the art toy scene in the United States as a novel canvas for artistic expression. Nearly ten years after his last Dunny design, he returns to his enduring creation with incomparable style.
Echoing his fragmented painting style seen on numerous striking murals around the world, the New Money 5" Dunny is a gleaming expression of his evolved artistry. Crafted in brilliant, chromed metal, with strips of filigree, symbols and disjoint text flowing effortlessly across the surface, the new edition transcends the Dunny's origins, blurring the lines between art object and toy. The innovative edition delivers an enduring, durable statement with the use of metal, the ideal material for chroming.
Tristan Eaton will debut the New Money 5" Metal Dunny ($100) on Friday (10.4, 6 PM) with a signing and limited quantity release at his Strange Future solo show (10.3 - 10.6) in New York City. This will be the only opportunity to purchase a signed figure. The Lower East Side art show and release location will be announced shortly. In addition to the NYC release, New Money will subsequently be available through retail channels.
Target Exclusive Star Wars Collection by Futura x Funko
Funko has announced a new Star Wars x Futura collection, to be available exclusively at Target stores in conjunction with Triple Force Friday (10.4)—a coordinated release of a huge number of Star Wars merchandise. The collection features the NYC graffiti legend's take on the iconic sci-fi franchise and the infamous Boba Fett with several POP vinyl toys as well as apparel (Tees + Caps) as well as a backpack. Many of the items feature Futura's signature splatter graffiti treatment including the Boba Fett seen above as well as two larger 10" versions with minimal line graphics.
While not included in the official Target x Funko PR image, Futura has also shown what appears to be a Jawa POP with his camouflage design. Perhaps there's more coming as well.
It's great to see Futura reaching a wide audience with this new Star Wars x Target x Funko collection. This Friday's the day, be ready.
Toy Tokyo at NYCC: Marvin the Martian Monotone SFBI from Ron English
As part of it's NYCC lineup, Toy Tokyo will debut the new Looney Tunes-licensed Marvin the Martian Monotone SFBI vinyl art toy from Ron English and Pop Life Global. The gray, white and black palette complements the artist's signature grin concept. While Marvin missed the B&W era of cartoon by just a few years, the monotone edition seems a fitting tribute to the spacey character which debuted in 1948.
The Marvin the Martian Monotone SFBI toys will be available from the Toy Tokyo booth [588/688] during New York Comic Con (10.3 - 10.6).
Sep 29, 2019
Tristan Eaton — 'Strange Future' NYC Exhibition
Tristan Eaton returns to New York City for his new Strange Future exhibition running October 3rd - 9th 2019 at an as yet unannounced location on the Lower East Side. Coinciding with NYCC (10.3 - 10.6), the show takes stock of the profoundly challenging times we find ourselves in through a collection of original paintings, print editions, and special releases.
In terms of editioned drops, the artist has announced three prints: Strange Future Poster (Open Edition, 11x17", $50, free to first 50 attendees), Let's Bang blacklight print (300 pcs,, 17x35", $250) and a 3D print of his Heavy Metal Magazine Cover (edition of 100, 36 x 52", $750). He will also have a special, mystery Kidrobot release —art toy perhaps?
Tristan Eaton will also debut his new note card set ($40) at the show. The set features five different card designs, each of a signature mural including Audrey of Mulberry (NYC) and Medusa (Hawaii) which was created for Versace. There are 20 cards in total (4 of each design) with 20 envelopes matching the design of the stylish slip case packaging.
Whereschappell — All Four Grinch Colors (9.29)
Here's a quick update on today's (9.29) pre-order for the new Grinch resin (v3) from UK artist Whereschappell. We featured three of the four editions/colors in our first post, but now that photos of the deep blue Grinch (with pink shoes to boot) are out, it's a perfect time for an update/reminder post. All four editions will be available for pre-order today (9.29) at 12 PM PDT from Mahalo Cabin for £64.99 ($80). These will ship in late November/Early December, in plenty of time for the dreaded holiday.
Sep 28, 2019
Woot Bear Celebrates 5th Anniversary with 'For Friendship' (9.28)
Woot Bear is turning five years old and to celebrate the San Francisco art toy destination is hosting 'For Friendship' tonight (9.28) from 6 to 9 PM showcasing figures from a flock of friends including Squibbles Ink, DKE, myplasticheart, Martian Toys, Toy Tokyo, 3D Retro, Super7, Munky King and Lulubell. In addition to the fun selection of toys from some of the top producers, Woot Bear has created a friendship print as a party favor and also has a few raffle surprises as well.
Congratulations to Woot Bear for five years of serving the art community and supporting independent artists. Here's to five more!
Woot Bear
1512 Haight St
San Francisco CA 94117
415.487.9000
myplasticheart at NYCC: Metallic Green Foo Pup by Reactor-88
The Foo Pup returns for NYCC — an annual highlight for those looking for hiqh-quality indie resin. Reactor-88's elusive mythical canine will be available in a brand-new metallic green (+ gray) colorway exclusively from myplasticheart [#888] for $40 each. This fifth edition of the Foo Pup is waiting for you and he's ready to play.
Sep 27, 2019
Unbox x Go Nagai x Kenny Wong — Devilmolly Sirene Edition (9.28)
First released at Superfestival 82 last weekend in Japan, the Devilmolly Sirene Edition (8") from Go Nagai x Kenny Wong will be available this Saturday (9.28) at 8 AM PDT from Unbox's online shop for $100 each. Devilmolly is a seamless blending of Go Nagai's iconic Devilman and Kenny Wong's beloved Molly characters. Rather than a mere composite, the coherent new figure retains the essence of each character.
The clever figure design allows for expressive poses. Her bent right arm is key, allowing Devilymolly to cover her mouth or eye while the straight left arm can be positioned behind her back for the classic nice vs. naughty pose. The Sirene edition features a light-hued design blending gold, milky white, blue and pink primary accents with pink, flesh-colored vinyl. Based on the photos it appears that this edition may have black light-reactive paint.
Dirtyrobot x Mighty Jaxx — DeadMen (9.28)
DeadMen by Dirty Robot (UK illustrator Daniel Isles) features two bearers of death, sent to bring souls into the afterworld. The latest art toy project from Mighty Jaxx, the 7" vinyl art toy features two DeadMen in action poses, set against a fog backdrop/base. Based on one of the artist's illustrations, the diorama-style piece allows for dynamic poses not normally seen with art toys while offsetting the downsides of the base by working it into the characters' world.
DeadMen will be released for pre-order on Saturday (9.28) at 6 AM PDT from Mighty Jaxx for $199 (w/free shipping) and is slated to ship in March of 2020.
Tokidoki in NYC: Mets + Yankees Unicornos and Tatsu Ramen Bowls
Tokidoki is headed to NYC for NYCC weekend (10.3 - 10.6) with big plans. First up for NYCC are the NYCC Execlusive Yankees and Mets Unicornos vinyl art toys. Whether you root for the Bronx Bombers or the team from Queens, you win. Pick them up from the tokidoki booth [#128].
And for something different, yet deliciously fun… Tokidoki has teamed up with Tatsu Ramen for a special 'Buy a bowl, get a bowl' event (10.3 - 10.6) featuring four NYC-themed limited-edition tokidoki ramen bows. Enjoy any Tatsu Ramen bowl at the NYC location and take home the tokidoki bowl it comes in. Each day will feature a different bowl design.
Toy Tokyo — Batman Bubblegum Edition by Joe Ledbetter x DC Artists Alley
The Caped Crusader returns to Gotham with Toy Tokyo's NYCC Exclusive Batman Bubblegum Edition from Joe Ledbetter and DC Artists Alley. A follow-up to JLed's OG take on Batman as an actual bat, the NYCC edition features a nearly all-pink design with black and yellow accents. It will be available from the Toy Tokyo booth [#588/#688] during NYCC (10.3 - 10.6).
With the announcement of the Batman Bubblegum edition, we're wondering if Bubblegum editions of Joe's Penguin, Catwoman, and Robin figures are close behind — all four were shown in proto form at DesignerCon 2018.
Sep 26, 2019
MoMA Exclusive DOB-kun figure by Takashi Murakami x Instinctoy
The MoMA Design Store is now taking orders for the brand-new DOB-kun figures from Takashi Murakami, with production by Instinctoy. There are apparently five MoMA exclusive editions with four colorways still available: Light Blue, Fuschia, Light Pink and White. The iconic standard blue edition appears to have sold out. As we saw with the early proto pictures, Instinctoy has gone to great lengths to ensure quality especially in terms of the number of individual pieces used for the eyes alone. This approach should allow extremely crisp painted details.
A must-have for Takashi Murakami collectors, the 9" DOB-kun vinyl figures are available now for pre-order at the MoMA Design Store for $650 each and are currently backordered with an estimated availability date of December 20th, 2019.
Kidrobot — Spiritus Dea Dunny Series (9.27)
The new Spiritus Dea Dunny series is almost upon us. Translated from Latin as 'Spirit of the Goddess', the 3.5" blind-boxed series features Goddess-inspired designs from twelve female artists including: Candie Bolton, Laura Colors of 64 Colors, Stephanie Buscema, Marylou Faure, Stickymonger, Mizna Wada, Lisa Toms, Mia Alvarez, MJ Hsu, Muxxi, Tomodachi Island (Emelie J.), and Yoii (Anna J.). This impressive new collection is the second all-female Dunny series following Dunny Fatale (2010).
The Spiritus Dea Dunny Series will be released on Friday (9.27) from select retailers including myplasticheart, I Am Retro and Rotofugi and directly from Kidrobot.com (9 AM PDT) for $12/blind-box. Taking a page from the welcome past, Kidrobot will include a special alternate color of Stickymonger's design for the first 50 people who order a case (20 pieces/$240) or more of the new Dunny series.
Whereschappell — New Grinch Resins (9.29)
With the holiday season starting to come into focus, Whereschappel is to revisit one of his most popular releases, the Grinch. While not labelled as such, we believe the new Grinch figure is the third version to-date and follows last year's Santa suit version.
For 2019 Grinch is back to his birthday suit, arms crossed defiantly, with a foot on a despised gift. The 'Xmas hater is back in four editions: Grinch Green, Vintage Green, White and Blue. All four will be available for pre-order this Sunday (9.29) at 12 PM PDT from Mahalo Cabin for £64.99 ($80). These are slated to ship at the end of November/Early December, plenty of time for Mr. Frown to pass judgment on your holiday cheer.
Toy Tokyo — NYCC Elefanka Blue by Ron English x Pop Life Global
Toy Tokyo will release the its NYCC Exclusive Elefanka Blue vinyl art toy (8") from Ron English and Pop Life Global from their convention booths [588/688]. A follow-up to the OG orange edition which made its USA debut at SDCC, the Blue edition features a blue + yellow gradient design highlighting the character's butterfly + elephant origins. While no price has been announced for the new Blue edition, the OG Orange edition was available at SDCC for $100.
Sep 25, 2019
Add Fuel x Superplastic — Fragil Superjanky Burnt AF (9.26)
Tile-based artist Add Fuel and Superplastic are following up the sold-out Fragil Superjanky with the new Burnt AF edition. In contrast with the bright blue hues of the OG edition, the new edition features a singed brown design, a result of Fragil's tiles being left to bake in the kiln just a bit too long.
Limited to just 400 pieces, the 8" Fragil Superjanky Burnt AF vinyl comes with a matching mini tile accessory and will be available for order on Thursday September 26 2019 at 11 AM PDT for $75 from Superplastic.com. The new edition is in stock and ready to ship.
myplasticheart at NYCC: Three Rato Kim 'Cat Releases
myplasticheart will release a trio of 'cat figures from Korean artist Rato Kim as part of their NYCC 2019 (10.3 - 10.6) lineup. First up is the Space Boxcat resin ($160) complete with planetary base. With vivid colors, space suit details and the prismatic space rock, this Boxcat is set to explore the unknown. Keeping the vibrant colors, mph will also have the hand-painted Dinocat Universe Heart Icon soft vinyl figures ($50). Both the Space Boxcat and the new Dinocat made their debuts at the recent ATH Hangzhou. Finally, mph will also have the Burger Cat Mini sofubi in an unpainted yellow edition ($10). Find all of these Rato Kim releases at myplasticheart's booth [#888].
AX2 Limited —'The Little Astronaut and Foxy' Set Pre-Order
Los Angeles-based AX2 Limited has announced and is taking pre-orders for their friendly cosmic duo. The Little Astronaut and Foxy vinyl figures features the intrepid space explorers with streamlined spacesuits and apparently removable clear helmets. Perhaps it's the blond child astronaut, but this set pleasantly reminds us of a celebrated series of graphic novels about the adventures of a young lad and his dog.
The Little Astronaut and Foxy vinyl art toy set is available now for pre-order for $130 from the AX2 shop and is slated to ship in Q1 2020.
Sep 23, 2019
Juce Gace — Hole-Home Pre-order (10.12)
From the clever mind of Juce Gace comes his newest nice yet naughty art toy. His first self-produced release, Hole-Home features everyone's favorite extraterrestrial with a slightly different vibe than when you last saw him. From the preview pic, the sculpting is impressive, especially that expression. This tongue-in-cheek piece follows Gace's Wood Awakening and Maneki-Dino pieces, both produced by Mighty Jaxx. We're wondering if this is a bust or if there's a further reveal on the way.
Limited to just 99 pieces, the Hole-Home resin (8") will be available for pre-order on Saturday, October 12th from the artist's web shop.
Five Points Festival Fall Popup Event (10.4 - 10.5)
Fall's here and with it comes NYCC (10.3 - 10.6) and the Five Points Festival Fall Popup Event (10.4 - 10.5) at 815 Broadway in Manhattan. The just announced free, all-ages event will bring together the toy community for new releases, exclusives, live painting, giveaways and more including beer from Lagunitas and Kings County Brewers Collective who will be offering a craft brew in collectable art cans from UK artist Czee13. Keep an eye out for the vendor list shortly. If you've been to previous Five Points Fest pop-ups, you're ahead of the curve as this one is in the same familiar spot.
Five Points Festival Fall Popup
October 4th and 5th 2019 (1- 10 PM)
815 Broadway
New York City, NY 10003
Flawtoys — Super Cell Stranger Lucid Dream (9.26)
Flawtoys is back with a special new edition of their popular Stranger resin figure which typically showcases embedded objects or suspended double pour effects. This time aorund, the Super Cell Stranger Lucid Dream edition features an embedded figure from Plastic Cell, hence the name. The colors work well here with almost neon magenta plastic cell figure popping nicely off the translucent purple Stranger cast.
Limited to 8 pieces, the Super Cell Stranger Lucid Dream edition (18 cm/7") will be released this Thursday (9.26) at 8 AM PDT for 135 euros ($149) on the Flawtoys site.
Fools Paradise — 'I Have The Power' Pre-Order
Next up for Fools Paradise is I Have the Power. The latest in a long line of pop culture homages and parodies, the new large-format vinyl figure (13") offers a fairly straightforward take on He-Man other than the clever 'F' variation on the chest armor and the addition of a pair of iconic high-top sneakers. The pose and muscular body are signature Fools' yet very much in line with He-Man in general.
Limited to a maximum of 398 pieces, I Have The Power is available for pre-order for $298 (includes global shipping) from the Fools Paradise web shop. These will ship out in the first quarter of 2020. If you're thinking that Skeletor must be in the works, you'd be right. Check the photo gallery.
KAWS — GONE Online Drop on KAWSONE (9.24)
GONE is coming to KAWSONE. Following this past weekend's opening of his Companionship in the Age of Loneliness exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, KAWS will make all three editions (Brown, Gray, and Black) of the 14.5" vinyl art toy—featuring a Companion carrying an apparently deceased BFF—available to customers worldwide on Tuesday (9.24) at 9 AM PDT via KAWSONE. While the USA pricing has not been announced, the museum offered the pieces at AUS $950 which is about $643.
The varying colors of the BFF for these pieces makes choosing a bit agonizing. While the all-black edition matches the giant outdoor bronze installed at NGV, the brown edition features the OG BFF in blue and then there's the Pink BFF for the Gray edition…