Jul 08, 2011
Joe Ledbetter’s ‘Piggy Bank’ @ TTF
Play Imaginative is showing Joe Ledbetter’s ‘Piggy Banks’ @ their TTF booth. These look very good, in fact I do wish they were vinyl toys rather than banks. After all these years, Joe’s aesthetic is still compelling [via J.ME]
Joe Ledbetter – Sno-Bunny-Fu + Mr. Bunny-Fu @ TTF
Joe Ledbetter knows tofu. Here’s a look at the new 4” Sno-Bunny-Fu and Mr. Bunny-Fu at TTF in the Play Imaginative booth. Each of the figures is 580nt (~ $18). From this photo, printing looks pretty tight on these [photo via J.ME]
Jul 07, 2011
Amanda Visell’s Custom Seahorses @ TTF
Here’s a look at some of Amanda Visell’s custom Seahorses available at the Taipei Toy Festival from the Switcheroo Pop-up located @ the Paradise Toy booth. As usual, Amanda’s done some top-notch work – really dig the Purple one. In case you’re wondering, the ones with the rainbow heads are homages to ‘Open-Chan’, the mascot of 7-Eleven in Taiwan. If you’re interested in a custom and are not able to go to TTF, please drop an email to [email protected].
Jul 06, 2011
Fluffy House – Pome ‘Metallic Apple’ Edition
The new Pome ‘Metallic Apple’ figure from commercial illustrator ‘Fluffy House’ will debut at TTF and SDCC from Unbox. The figure is the first in a series of four figures with interchangeable parts. Cactac will also be shown in proto form at TTF. Cactus anyone ? So if you’re counting, that’s three new ‘red’ releases from Unbox.
Jeff Lamm – M5 Bravo and Stee-Gar ‘Profondo Rosso’
Unbox seems to be focused on the color red for their upcoming SDCC/TTF releases. In addition to Patricio Oliver’s Red Almond and Salamandra, Unbox is also about to drop Jeff Lamm’s M5 Bravo and Stee-Gar in the ‘Profondo Rosso’ edition at both TTF and SDCC. While the teaser is nice, we’d love to see the full figures and have release info. Yes, yes, patience.
Patricio Oliver – Almond and Salamandra ‘Red Edition’
It looks like Patricio Oliver’s Salamandra and Almond 2-figure set from Unbox will debut in an all red edition at both TTF and SDCC. Not much info so far except these will be ‘rather limited’. Release info should follow shortly. Very nice. Love the detail on Salamandra.
Jul 05, 2011
Custom Toy Workshop @ TTF (7.9)
Yes, I’m in TTF mode. Paradise Toy is working with Monster Taipei to bring Taiwanese collectors and budding customizers a ‘Custom Toy Workshop’ on Saturday, July 9th from 2 pm to 6 PM featuring the talents of Amanda Visell, Michelle Valigura, Carlos East and the Baroness (she’s the boss!). If you’re going to the show and want to buy attend the workshop, buy a ticket online (~ $126).
Coarse’s ‘Shadows Over Paradise’ Exhibition in Taipei (7.9)
It’s been two years since Coarse has visited Taiwan for the Taipei Toy Festival. They are back this year with ‘Shadows Over Paradise: Milestones of a Coarse Life’, a seemingly retrospective exhibit, opening on July 9th @ Paradise. No real word yet on what to expect from the show though based on their track record, it’ll be awesome. The flier image seems to suggest a new edition of Casting Shadows (diff Nism colors, diff Kite colors, and diff foam leaves colors) perhaps to drop at the show ?
Coarse || Shadows over Paradise: milestones of a coarse life
July 9th through July 17th, 2011
Paradise
17, Lane 187, Section 1, Dun Hua South Road
Taipei, Taiwan
Taipei Toy Festival (7.7 – 7.10)
Summer is the season of big toy conventions. While SDCC gets most of the shine and attention, Taipei Toy Festival is noteworthy for its focus on Asian artists and companies and almost complete devotion to vinyl toys as opposed to pop culture as a whole. This year’s show gets started on July 7th and runs through July 10th @ the Huashan Culture Park in Taipei – a renovated factory complex now used for arts and culture events. Organized by Taiwanese toy brand Monster Taipei, the show is one of the best places to meet artists from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan. TTF is also noteworthy in that seemingly half of the attendees are female. Strange but true (and definitely welcome).
It’s a fun show and I’ve enjoyed the experience each of the four years I’ve been lucky enough to attend. Hopefully I’ll be able to make it #5 next year.
Thunderpanda – Lemi the Space Wanderer Giant Plush @ TTF
Thunderpanda will debut giant plush versions of his Lemi the Space Wanderer figure @ this week’s Taipei Toy Festival from the Plastic Culture booth (#A7). Hand-made, the plush stands nearly 30” tall and will be available in Blue (75 pieces) and Pink (Indonesia Exclusive, 25 pieces). The price? Only $39 which includes worldwide shipping. Can we say bargain ? If you aren’t going to be at TTF, the giant plush are also available directly from Plastic Culture.