May 2012

BP x FERG Trouble Boy No. 7 [Drifter] to Drop June 16th!

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It’s official: the boys have touched down in Japan and Shinji at Tomenosuke has announced that Trouble Boy No.7 [Drifter] is releasing at MIDNIGHT Japan Time on June 16th for $150 USD. Given that this is a retailer release, shipping is likely extra. The edition is limited to 150 so prepare yourself for an Olympian-level race, folks!

Also: be sure to check a time zone calculator to determine the release time for your region. I’ve linked one here.

Recap: Spectrum Fantastic Art Live!

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OK so SPECTRUM RECAP! In case you missed the earlier coverage, the Circus Posterus caravan (Kathie Olivas, Brandt Peters, Travis Louie, Chris Ryniak and Archer Dougherty) rolled into the fine city of Kansas City, MO, for the first-ever Spectrum Fantastic Art convention. Held at the Kansas City Convention Center from May 18-20th, the show was essentially an offshoot of the annual mag, celebrating the cream of the crop of the contemporary art community.

Not surprisingly, the level of talent in Bartle Hall was unprecedented: more than 200 creative professionals from all over the globe exhibited at the event. But that didn’t stop the Circus from making its presence known, with some fans lining up as early as 6am and most editions selling out in the first 15 minutes. (Biznass.)

Talking toys specifically, Spectrum saw the introduction of the Frostbite 4 Legged Masao and the first resin Calliope Jackalope handpaint from Kathie Olivas and Brandt Peters. Travis Louie brought along a trio of gorgeous custom Stan Skelves and Chris Ryniak let loose some custom Bubblegut and Crumbeaters.

And there was also some pretty sweet surprises: do you see what I see below?

IS THAT AN ULTRA SQUID GIRL?!

Indeed, it is! I’m going to wager that it’s one of the resin editions and details on this project will emerge soon. A Classic Stingy Jack, Octopus Girl and some Ghostly Stans also made an appearance. Seriously: I’m jealous, Kansas.

And if that wasn’t enough, the 2D art was off the hook, as well: small original paintings, drawings and prints from each of the artists. A nice change of pace; here’s hoping we see more of this at future cons.

That’s a wrap for this year! There’s a whole whack of event photos below and also via the gallery. Enjoy!

CP Sofubi: Stingy Jack Goes Into Production!

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*Sniff* *sniff* … ahhh … you smell that? That, my friends, is the scent of sweet, sweet sofubi vinyl going into production. Following his big first reveal during the Monsters & Misfits Japan tour last month, Brandt Peters’ devilish Stingy Jack (in collaboration with Tomenosuke-syoten) has since been improved in a couple of areas, making the toy thicker and better supported. Level up, baby … this little mischief maker is hitting the conveyer catwalk looking better than ever.

The first colorway is anticipated to drop at the end of June (fingers crossed). We’ll drop a sneak or two closer to the date.

In other news: Kathie Olivas’ Callipe Jackalope is just about finished in wax and is on its way to molds. We’ll keep y’all in the loop on that project as it develops as well. So much goodness in the works right now! *Asplodes*

For those new to all this awesome, Circus Posterus’ sofubi vinyl is a brand-spankin’-new collaborative project in conjunction with Japan’s Tomenosuke-syoten. Three figures in this series have been revealed thus far: Brandt’s Stingy Jack, Kathie’s Calliope Jackalope and Chris Ryniak’s Stinky Ginger. The figures are slated for release throughout 2012, with Stingy Jack making the first exit around end-June(ish). Since it’s a collab project, the editions will be shared between CP and Tomenosuke, with each party receiving half. In other words, these will be limited, there will be chaos and you’ll feel freaking INVINCIBLE when you score one after stumbling with anxious fingers and a pounding heart. Welcome to the league of F5.

Stick around, folks — things are just starting to heat up!!

 

Green Blood Charity Group Show @ Dorothy Circus Gallery 6.14

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Opening next month at Dorothy Circus Gallery in Rome is Green Blood, a charity group exhibition benefiting Greenpeace and Oceana — organizations that focus on the preservation of nature and its wildlife. Curated by Alexandra Mazzanti and Tara McPherson, the bill includes CP’s master of class, Mr. Travis Louie, along with the formidable Kathie Olivas and Brandt Peters. Joining them are:

Tara McPherson, Jeff Soto, Martin Wittfooth, Lola, Brandi Milne, Leila Ataya, Nicoletta Ceccoli, Roland Tamayo, Ana Bagayan, Scott Musgrove, Yosuke Ueno, Sergio Mora, Dave Cooper, Paolo Guido, Afan, Alessia Iannetti, Anastasia Kurakina, Gary Baseman, Ixie Darkonn, Mr. Klevra and Corine Perier.

That’s some serious heat and for a great cause. I have no eye candy yet, but will be sure to share the goodness as soon as it hits my inbox. Green Blood opens June 14th with an opening reception starting at 7pm. Show’s until July 20th!

FERG’s CHIPP s004 and BOOMER [FORT BURNOUT-DSRT] 5.28

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Continuing last week’s coverage of FERG’s CHIPP s004 and Boomer comes the full shebang on this sweet new series, dubbed [Fort Burnout – DSRT].

First off: hot damn. Look at the utter MAGNIFICENCE of this Squadt + K11 combo: interchangeable smoke and yellow lenses; a ton of gear including a tactical vest w/ pouches, totally pimp b&w bandana, Fort Burnout shirt and the overly impressive pew-pew power of a sMK23 w/ holster and SM4 w/ red dot suppressor.

And that’s just CHIPP.

Boomer, on the other hand, lives up to his name with a head case packing two pipe bombs. He also has a harness (aka ‘the treat pouch’).

These two will be making their exit via the Project Squadt store this Monday, May 28th at noon Central for $115/set. There are 200 of them. Hope y’all haven’t taken off for Memorial Day; it’s time to polish the crash helmet!!!

Kathie Olivas & Travis Lampe for Urban Decay III 6.2

The third annual Urban Decay group exhibition is a little over a week away and Kathie Olivas & Travis Lampe have set the bar with four beautiful originals.

Kathie has chosen to mix things up, offering both 2- and 3-dimensional works, including a small wood painting (these are typically 8″x4.5″) and an Octopus Girl, which never ceases to amaze.

And then there’s this beauty. I’m pretty sure I’ll never grow tired of the 4-legged sculpt; it’s brilliantly executed and exudes such character, even when unpainted: the poised body and slight bow of the head suggest a cunning and mischief, and I like that so many of CP’s toys possess that ability to ‘speak’. I can totally see this fella slinking about the pathways of some acidic dreamland. This particular Masao is a custom bronze jobby for the exhibition. (Bronze painted, not cast … but hot damn that’d be sweet!)

Then, there’s poor Mr. Reginald from Travis Lampe, who seems to have fallen victim to the weight of his own head. Or maybe he’s paralyzed with fear at the sight of someone approaching with a match. Either way: aww. Looks like me every time I’m writing to deadline.

This bombastic bloke is of the sizable variety, too: 14″ all the way around, and acrylic on wood (I’m sure there are a few jokes in there). I’m quite fond of him and his unrelenting look of terror.

Urban Decay III kicks off June 1st through June 27th at the Workhouse in Lorton, VA. Opening reception June 2nd from 7 to 11pm! For more sneaks, visit Urban Decay’s Flickr page.

Stranger Factory Presents: Le Petite Mort, Scuffle & Sinister Dexterity 6.1

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Stranger Factory is gearing up for a romp into the realm of the strange and unsettling with a triple-header solo extravaganza this June. Master of the macabre, Chet Zar, sugary surrealist Charlie Immer and gothic sculptor Stephan Webb are blowing into the Duke City to intrigue and dazzle us with explorations of death, biomechanics and a hearty dose of violence. The exhibitions stand alone and also blend seamlessly with overarching themes, creating a narrative of bizarre and beautiful darkness through painting and sculpture.

Chet Zar on Le Petite Mort:

I have been fascinated by death since I was very young. Skulls and death related imagery have always resonated with me, probably as a place to hang my childhood fears.

Since I usually create artwork from my subconscious, you might conclude that I am subconsciously confronting my own mortality through painting. It could be true. But honestly, I don’t really know for sure. I know what I like to paint, and I like to paint skulls!

Benjamin Franklin once said, “‘In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Well, taxes are quite a boring subject. But death! That is another story entirely. It’s going to happen to me, you, everybody we know and everybody we don’t. It’s even going to happen to those who have not been born yet and it has happened to everybody who have come before us. Surely this is a valid topic for exploration though art!

Charlie Immer on Scuffle:

Scuffle is a tribute to 2D fighting video games. I hoped to capture the specific structure of those games.  From the individual character portraits complete with battle damage, to the themed areas where the damage is received. Ranged magic and melee combat is explored. In all of my work my characters feel no pain so there is no need for empathy. We can all just enjoy the  blood, icing, and gem bits as they spill, splatter, and ricochet onto the beaches and cave walls of the world that’s been created.

Stephan Webb on Sinister Dexterity:

A major theme for this upcoming show is the representation of hands throughout the series. I feel that a hand gesture can evoke just as much as an emotional response as a facial expression. Also, the name for this show has just as much roots in biology as the pieces themselves. Biologists love their Latin root words when creating names for anything that, previously, is unprescribed.  For instance, the word “sinister” is derived from the Latin  word Sinistra, meaning “left handed.” During the middle ages (and in some modern cultures) left handed people were seen as being evil, thus the word has developed an ominous connotation in modern contexts. The word “dexterity” is derived from the Latin word Dextro, meaning “right handed” and, in modern contexts, is referred to as the ability of carrying out manual tasks. What happens when you combine right and left hand? My show, Sinister Dexterity,  an ominous compilation of manual aptitude!

Le Petite Mort, Scuffle and Sinister Dexterity run through July 2nd. Opening reception June 1st from 6-9pm!

Amanda Louise Spayd’s Antique Pendant Project

Lately Mandi has been indulging in a little creative R&R by experimenting with crafting her own antique pendants. Each is unique and features a mixed media drawing of one of her little dudes, set in resin. She’s considering selling them; I think we all know the obvious answer to this one ;)

Will keep you all apprised on this project and her bee critters as details emerge!

BP x FERG Trouble Boy No. 7 [Drifter]: A Brief History

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Some interesting history about [Drifter] and the Yakuza from Shinji at Tomenosuke-syoten. Trouble Boy No. 7 is slated for release mid-June.

At the preparatory stage of the Trouble Boy #7 DRIFTER, I talked about the symbol accessories of the Yakuza with Brandt Peters. One of them was “tanto knife” that comes along with the Mac11. However, some of the ideas were finally omitted. One example was a badge which was drawn on the concept art of Brandt’s. I sent him a picture of real badges which is famous as a symbol of Japanese syndicates; however, I told him that our design should not be associated with the real one. Finally the idea was not adopted, so honestly I was a little bit relieved. It was just like ”Better safe than sorry.”
On the other hand, Brandt had a tattoo idea from the early stage. The special point of the Trouble Boy this time is the hidden tattoo covering the whole body under the clothes presented by so-called Brandt’s specialty touch. The above image is the first tattoo layout sent from Brandt on July 7, 2011.

[via the Tomeno blog]

Bzzz bzzz bzzz …

What happens when you can’t find striped felt? Paint the stripes on yourself! Seriously, between the faces and the bodies, Amanda Spayd’s forthcoming bee critters are going to be almost entirely hand painted and will also smell of lavender fields and honey. Yum.

As of right now, Mandi anticipates the edition to be larger than Belladonna, which was 50 pieces. Something tells me she’s going to need something a bit stronger than wheat beer by the end of all this ;)

Very excited to see how these turn out; updates to come!