After closing out his very successful show, Dead Wood, at Stranger Factory last month, Gary Ham is barreling full speed ahead with lots of new work and a new child on the way! He’s had a busy year, with the release of the adorable Wooper Looper and the stackable Monster Toytem, which was first seen in handmade wood form at last year’s Bewitching show.
(Ham, hamming.)
Ham graciously allowed me to hog a bit of his time for a short interview on some of his processes, tools, and artistic choices. Process images usually make me squeal with delight, and the trough of images Gary sent in are no exception. Anyway, I won’t boar you to death with my bad puns, sow let’s just move on to the interview, shall we?
Your primary sculpting medium is wood, which is still a pretty unique choice amongst most designer toy artists – what draws you to wood over other materials?
HAM: Woodshop and art were my two favorite classes in school. If I didn’t find success doing art, I was going to be a carpenter. I guess I found a way to do both. Plus, wood smells good and I’m far too paranoid to be around the chemicals for resin and vinyl making.
Ham’s Skull Shelf – before and after
You’ve customized a ton of toys, but you’ve also produced a ton of originals in the past year. Do you find customs particularly different to work on compared to originals?
HAM: It is quite different, because it’s not entirely your own work. You have to adapt a design to the form and make it your own. There have been thousands of customs done for some platforms, so it can be tricky to create something that hasn’t already been done before. In some ways, it is more challenging to do customs than to create something new from scratch.
That being said, I do enjoy a good challenge every now and then.
You dove headfirst into the vinyl manufacturing process with Carrot Shake Jake in 2008, but after the late 2010 release of Hermes, you’ve been incredibly productive in ramping up the release of your own self produced designs, such as the Monster Totem and Wooper Looper. What are the pros and cons of running the whole vinyl production process yourself, from sculpting to coordinating overseas manufacturers?
HAM: There are a lot of pros. You get to remain in full control of your vision, have the satisfaction of knowing you did it yourself, and retain all rights and any profits. However, it’s a tedious, long, and expensive process.
It can take many months to years to see a toy design go from concept to finished product. That is a long time to have funds tied up. You can never really know if a toy will be liked enough to be purchased, so it can be stressful gambling with your hard earned savings. I feel extremely lucky that I am able to do what I do.
So, you collaborated with Walter “Chauskoskis” Jacott (Chauskoskiskisksi…that took a while to spell) as a sculptor for your Wooper Looper figure. Obviously, you’re a decent sculptor yourself, so what made you decide that collaboration would be the right choice for this figure? And…what do you think makes a good collaboration?
HAM: Haha! His name just rolls doesn’t it? Sort of like Shingalingydingding. (ed. note: heeeey!) But seriously, I know my limits and leave the real sculpting to the professionals. I’ve always been a huge admirer of Chauskoskis and knew he was the first person I wanted to reach out to. I contacted Walter, we talked for a bit and the fact that he actually knew what an axolotl was and showed great interest in working with me on bringing Wooper to life really helped me realize there was no other option. Chauskoskis was meant to sculpt him. Walter really is the best and he translated Wooper perfectly. What is also cool is that Velocitron, who handles the manufacturing of Wooper Looper in Japan has axolotls for pets. As odd as it may sound, I really believe the three of us were meant to work together on this toy.
A good collaboration begins with respect for one another and their work. If you don’t have that, I think it shows. It’s important that all parties involved have the same vision and passion for the project. Good collaborations should feel effortless, like it was meant to be.
Another example of a good collaboration I had was for Alberto Cerriteno’s “Playtime Cat”. One day, I was looking through his Flickr and I saw he wanted to have a toy made of his “Playtime Cat” illustration, but was having difficulty getting any interest from toy companies. I looked at the illustration and instantly knew how I would translate it into a wood toy. I contacted Alberto and mentioned the collaboration. He trusted me enough to design the toy and he then painted it in his most amazing style. It turned out so nice and is a collaboration I am truly proud to have been a part of.
The original image for “Playtime Cat” and the final collaboration piece between Gary Ham and Alberto Cerriteno!
What are your three favourite tools – the ones that you’ve come to rely on so much you feel like you wouldn’t be able to make anything if it didn’t exist in your shop?
HAM: Tough one. They all get used, but if I could only use three, I would keep the bandsaw, miter saw, drill press.
Ham’s woodshop, where at least 50% of the magic happens. From back to front: drill press, bandsaw, miter saw, table saw, belt sander, disc sander and router table.
I assume that unless you’re an excessively clean carpenter, you probably don’t paint in the wood shop…
HAM: I’m all over the place. I try to clean and put things back as I go, but rarely does it ever work out that way. I do all the wood working in the garage and then do all the painting at the dining room table.
Well..it used to be the dining room table. Now, it is only used for that once a year – Thanksgiving. The rest of the year, it’s covered in projects.
The Ham Process (which is very different from processed ham) for a current project on Gary’s workbench – wood tree shelves for his Android “Whoogle the Owl” AP. A chunk of basswood gets templated, squared up, sent through the band saw and belt sander, and finally lands on Gary’s painting table, which also features cel vinyl paint, print making supplies, piles of fabric, and other assorted art makings.
How do you recalibrate your brain between “day job” and “art job,” and what advice would you give the many artists who are still balancing both?
HAM: I do all toy and custom work at night and on weekends. I work the day job for 8 hours a day and then depending on what’s on my plate I might work on personal projects anywhere from 1-5 hours a night. I am not a complete workaholic or insomniac like many artists are and I do find a happy balance between work, family, and toy life.
My suggestion would to be set priorities and know your limits. Don’t take on more than you can handle. You already have a day job you probably don’t enjoy, so be sure you are having fun doing your own art or else you’ll find yourself just working 2 jobs.
Oh man, you’re going to be a dad! Have you started reorganizing your life and art to fit around your new child? And here’s a total softball question – what are you looking forward to sharing the most – as an artist and dad?
HAM: I haven’t taken on any less work, that’s for sure! This is our first child, so I’m in for a real shock, I think. I’m super excited to be a daddy. I’ll find a happy balance between making toys and ensuring I’m the best dad I can be.
This little piggy went to market – check out Gary’s work in the store:
The Monster Toytem | SF Exclusive Wooper Looper | Originals | Dead Wood
Looking forward to more hammy goodness? Gary says “There are several new color ways of Wooper Looper in the works and possibly a follow up to the Monster Toytem. Maybe blind boxed next time around? And I think Hermees needs a new compadre to pal around with.” Exciting!
Keep an eye on Gary Ham at Superham, and look out for his return to Stranger Factory with a show with RAGNAR in 2013!
