Seen: Metallic Machinations @ TAG

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Toy Art Gallery presented the opening for the   robot lovin’ 5-person Metallic Machinations exhibition on Saturday evening (12.11).  This well-conceived and curated show blends the talents of Rohby, Cris Rose, Jester, Dril One, and Phu! into a mix that is cohesive while still highlighting each artists’ signature take on the unifying theme of metallic marvels. 

Here’s our look at the show which was shot at the tail end of a gallery hopping blitz which crisscrossed Hollywood hitting seven spots.  That’s VP-speak for… don’t use these pics as a guide of attendance, which was much better than these shots suggest 😉  Luckily, I was able to meet Rohby for the first time and catch up with Jester whom I hadn’t chatted with face to face for quite awhile. 

While I had previously seen quite a few of Cris Rose’s pieces (at TAG no less), I gained a new appreciation for his work with the serious salvo for this show, demonstrating both his original vision as well as his serious skill as a customizer. Jester realized a new vision with his PVC-based rockets, the largest of which has blinking LEDs.  Culled from custom fabricated parts as well as the occassional ‘found’ object (read: Brita filter), these are pretty slick.  In addition to his MAD*L based power loader customs, Rohby released his fourth Aktion Figure – Full Baked Old Snake complete with a droid companion created just for this drop.  Not only do these resin figures look great with tremendous design and execution, the articulation is top-notch. Rohby is clearly at the pinnacle of self-made resin figures in the USA.   For his part, Dril One combined his signature rusted metal look with a slightly remixed color pallete over a large number of tight custom toys from art toys to an AT-AT Walker and a  tank.  Finally, Singaporean artist Phu! offered his Rebel Pilots which are quickly becoming his signature character.  He also went big with a pair of  mech-ified interpretations of Kozik’s Ludwig Van busts complete with a functioning hatch in the figure’s hat which opens to accommodate a rebel pilot.

We’re happy to report that in addition to succeeding on the creative and artistic front, the work also  resonated well with collectors.  Quite a few of the pieces had sold by the end of the opening reception. That said, there are several pieces still available.  Check out the gallery’s official show preview but please note that it has not yet been updated to reflect sales.