Kuso Vinyl – Celsius OG, FMJ, & Ninja Spiki OG Drops (11.27)

Kuso Vinyl will officially launch three vinyl figures on Black Friday (11.27) @ 8:00 AM PDT – both the OG and Full Metal Jacket (FMJ) versions of Rotobox’s Celsius figure as well as Nakanari’s Ninja Spiki OG (1:10 is a Bloody Chase).

For Black Friday only, Kuso is offering free prints with the new releases -- get a free Celsius giclee print with celsius orders and a free spiki invitation giclee with Ninja Spiki OG orders. A sweet deal.  The print offers are good only on 11.27.  So don’t snooze.  Hit the jump for pics of the Black Friday bonus prints.

 

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Dave Pressler – Angry Clobber Monkey Signing (11.28)

Dave Pressler will bring his cool Angry Clobber Monkey vinyl to Rotofugi in Chicago for a signing this Saturday (4-6 PM).  Come check out the fiesty original figure produced by Munky King  and the brand new "Anger for the People" poster (pic after the jump).  As a bonus Dave's a pretty fun guy to chat with, stop by and say hi.

Rotofugi Designer Toy Store & Gallery
1953 W. Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
312.491.9501

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Escobas – Molote Release and Signing (11.14)

Artist Eduardo Escobar Beckwith (aka El Escobas) will be at Munky King Melrose this Saturday, November 14th 2009 (2-5 PM) to release and sign his Molote DIY figure.  Based on Oaxaca wrestlers, the Molote figure (7.5”) was produced completely in Mexico by Plasticpop. 

Munky King
7308 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
323.938.0091

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Seen: Peekaboo Monster – The Birds OG Drop

Peekaboo dropped the anticipated OG colorway of his ‘The Birds’ wall-mount resin figure this past Friday (11.6) at Ronin Gallery in Echo Park.  Limited to 25 pieces, the OG colorway created in conjunction with AntiKillers is available for $150 (+ $35 shipping).  Vinyl Pulse made the trip out to catch the release event.

Demonstrating his skills, Peekaboo customized a blank Birds figure on the spot.  Finished in well under two hours, the bright green and purple one-off custom is as you can see after the jump,  pretty sweet. One lucky grand-prize winner of the evening’s raffle ($10 to enter) went home with the custom! 

In addition to ‘The Birds’, Peekaboo has a quite few other things going on including his Three Apples Hello Kitty print which he signed on Friday and dropped on Saturday @ Royal/T.

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Mimobot Pop-Up Shop Opening Party (11.5)

Mimoco  has opened their first-ever Mimobot popup shop inside Munky King on Melrose and they are celebrating with an opening party tonight, Thursday November 5th (7-10 PM).  Several artists will be in the house --  Thomas Han will be painting live and photographer Brian McCarty and Lili Chin will drop by.  Mimoco will rock their brand-new Pop-Up Shop exclusive Mimobot   as well as  their full line of  designer USB flash drives.  Since everyone loves free stuff, there will be giveaways and contests as well.  Speaking of free – enjoy tunes spun by Colby and Barrier as well as Bear Flag wine. If you want a little preview, check out the official Pop-Up shop teaser video.

Munky King
7308 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
323.938.0091

Superdeux – Auto + USBoombox release @ KRSF (11.4)

French artist Superdeux will be at Kidrobot San Francisco tomorrow, Wednesday November 4th (6-8 PM) for a release and signing of his new Auto + USBoombox set from Artoyz Originals. Based on the original character he designed for the Band Auto, this new toy comes in four colorways – Regular, Europe, USA and the very rare Artoyz edition.

KR San Francisco
1512 Haight Street
415.487.9000

Brent Nolasco x mphlabs – Gordo Blue Orchid (10.30)

mphlabs will rock a Halloween release of Brent Nolasco’s Gordo Blue Orchid edition resin figure on October 30th (7-9 PM) @ myplasticheartnyc for $75 each.  Each of the debut Gordo figures is hand-painted by Brent himself – truly a treat. This one looks sharp.  A limited number will be available for the event with the remainder dropping online @ myplasticheart.com on November 2nd @ 1 PM EST.

  Also, here’s an extra treat: arrive in costume and come away with a free ‘Ghostly’ blind box. Go check out Gordo and meet Brent while he signs and sketches.  Btw, Brent is a great sketcher – detailed and varied. 

myplasticheartnyc
210 Forsyth St.
New York, New York 10002
646.290.6866

Fire Panda 10th Anniversary in Shanghai

 

Illustrator Bee Wong’s Fire Panda group  will celebrate it’s 10th anniversary on Saturday (10.17), with a sprawling exhibition split across the Iconic-1 store and the adjacent Solegoodz kicks boutique in Shanghai.  Curated and organized by adFunture’s Eddi Yip, the exhibition will feature paintings, customized PUMA sneaks, and customs of the brand-new 14” Fire Panda vinyl  (above)from adFunture which is dropping at the show [Seen on Eddi Yip’s blog].

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Michael Lau - CSBOOTH17 (10.17 - 10.18)

Fresh off his milestone Gardener 10th show in Los Angeles, Michael Lau  will open his CSBOOTH17 show on October 17th and 18th at Michael Gallery in Quarry Bay, HK.  Based on scans of an article in East Touch Magazine [via totorosuki's flickr], it appears that the HK editions of the Gardener 10th figures in awesome vivid colors will be released at the show, including two different colors of LA Fat.  The highly coveted 10th Anniversary Nike SB x Michael Lau shoes + figure set (larger NY Fat) will also be available at the show.

Michael Gallery
11/F, Lok’s Industrial Building
204 Tsat Tsz Mui Road, Quarry Bay
Hong Kong
852.2811.3111

Seen: Buff Monster – 8” Dunny Signing @ Kidrobot LA

Buff Monster kicked off his three cities in three days signing tour for his new 8” Dunny with a stop at Kidrobot LA this past Wednesday.  We rolled in a bit late (ahem) but hear that there was a good sized line as the signing started.  Buff signed his Dunny which looks really nice with the glossy finish (personally all matte, all the time is getting a little tired) as well as sketched on several  mini Munnys and in many sketch books. Collectors of all ages made the event including those that could not yet walk.  Enjoy the pics. 

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Coop -- Lil' Mort Release Party (10.1)

Munky King will officially unleash the new Lil' Mort vinyl figures by Coop with a release party this Thursday, October 1st (7-10 PM) @ their spot on Melrose. The lowbrow pioneer will be on hand to sign his creation named after the French phrase "Le Petit Mort', 'a metaphor for the spiritual release one experiences from orgasm'. The cute yet deadly reaper stands 7" tall, comes with a removable scythe and will be available in two editions at the event -- standard black (ed. of 400, $70) and the small run clear edition (ed. of 100 pieces, $80).  Original artwork and prints will also be available.

Munky King
7308 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
323.938.0091

Seen: Joe Ledbetter – Slander Signing @ Kidrobot LA

Joe Ledbetter was at Kidrobot LA on Thursday for a signing/release of his new Slander figure from Play Imaginative.   While the new figure launched last month in Singapore, this event served as the unofficial USA release.  Early birds caught the Lava worm while others happily picked up the three other colorways.

In addition to signing his slithery new creation, Joe sketched for fans and of course signed some of his previously released figures.  One fan brought so many pieces that he cycled back into line several times – quite a collection.

Relaxed and fun, the night went smoothly and featured an appearance by the Baroness and Mr. Baroness (Carlos East).

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Thomas Han – Dunny ‘09 Figure + Print Set Signing (9.26)

Thomas Han will release his Dunny 09 + Print Set (ed. of 20) this Saturday, September 26th  from 11 am to 3 PM at Dekorner (inside Frank and Sons Collectible show) in the City of Industry. Come for his Dunny 09 set and stay to get a sketch.  Thomas will be signing and sketching for all.  If you haven’t seen him sketch, we think you’ll be pleased – he’s a pro.  Also, please note Dekorner only accepts cash (ATms are available onsite).

Dekorner (inside Frank and Sons)
19649 San Jose Ave
City of Industry, CA 91748

Seen: Amanda Visell – Wood Donkey Dunny @ KRLA

 

Amanda Visell started her four cities in four days tour for her brand-new fabulous Wood Donkey Dunny by Kidrobot with a Tuesday release at Kidrobot LA on Melrose.   Prior to the doors opening at 6 PM, the line wrapped around the corner and lasted until a few minutes before closing at 8 PM.  Amanda sketched on the Dunnys, the boxes, sketch books and of course DIY figures especially Mini Munnys. 

A few collectors mentioned that the Wood Donkey Dunny is their favorite 8"" Dunny so far -- a pretty bold statement though understandable.  It's a nice design and pushes the Dunny shape with the cool 3D leaves and the excellent wood texture complete with a rendition of Amanda's dry brush technique.   Don't hold us to this, but we believe there are a handful or so of Dunnys left at KRLA...  Up next:  KRSF (Wed), KR Dallas (Thursday), KRNYC (Friday).  Wood Donkey Dunny will be available from Kidrobot.com on Thursday, the 20th.

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Seen: Los Angeles Bic Buddy Release @ Crewest

 

This past Saturday, Bic Plastics officially launched the brand new Bic Buddy mini-fig, designed by Marka27, @ Crewest in downtown LA.  A steady stream of collectors rolled through to buy and open their Bic Buddy Series 1 blind boxes featuring desings from thirteen artists including Dave Flores, Jesse Hernandez, Marka27 and Ritzy Periwinkle who were on hand to sign and sketch. 

The release event had a really nice energy, very welcome  especially in these challenging times. Diversity is a strength – new collectors drawn by the urban art rather than the toys per se fueled the launch.   The Bic Buddy launch tour continues in NYC at Toy Tokyo (8.21) and Chicago at Rotofugi (8.22).

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MaiHiro – Game of Death (8.29.09)

Dragatomi will celebrate their grand opening and the  release of their exclusive Spiki figure from Nakanari and Kuso Vinyl with the Game of Death art show (flier) on August 29th 2009, featuring work from MaiHiro (Nakanari and Soujohn).  The collaborative event will also feature work from Dave ‘Outtamymind’ Quiles, Jure Gavran, and Rotobox. Dig the theme -- ninjas, nunchucks, kung fu  and more – heaven.  So perhaps it’s not a surprise that Vinyl Pulse is  one of the event sponsors.  Check back soon for more including shots of the GOD Spiki and art previews.

Dragatomi
2317 J. Street
Sacramento, CA 95816
916.706.0535

Lou Pimentel – Cranston Fellows Jr. Release (8.28)

 

First seen right here on Proto Monday, Lou Pimentel’s newest resin figure, Cranston Fellows Jr., from mphlabs drops on August 28th (6-9 PM) with a release party (flier) at myplasticheartnyc.  The first ‘Hellfire’ edition (4.5” tall x 9” wide) features a wicked crimson paint job with hand-details by Lou himself.  It will be available at the opening for $80 and for one-night only will come with a bonus limited edition print and a raffle entry for a large canvas painting done by Lou just for the release.

Be sure to bring your sketchbooks for Lou to do his thing.  If you can’t make the NYC drop, then be sure to hit the online release @ myplasticheart.com on August 31st at 1 PM EDT.  Vinyl Pulse is proud to be a sponsor of the debut of Cranston Fellows Jr. 

myplasticheartnyc
210 Forsyth St.
New York, New York 10002
646.290.6866

Bic Buddy Launch – LA (8.15), NYC (8.21), Chicago (8.22)

Bic Plastics will officially launch their Bic Buddy Series 1 mini-figures with three release party/signings (flier) for August in Los Angeles, New York City and Chicago.  The blind-boxed Bic Buddy S1 features artist interpretations of the platform shape designed by marka27 from   Jesse Hernandez, Angry Woebots, Marka27, Andrew Bell, Dave Flores, Cope2, Scribe, Brandt Peters, MAD, Sket, Ritzy Periwinkle, kaNO, and Indie84.

The LA event does down on August 15th @ Crewest Gallery and will feature David Flores, Jesse Hernandez, Marka27, Angry Woebots and Ritzy Periwinkle.  Toy Tokyo will host the NYC event on August 21st (6-9 PM) with signings by Sket, Kano, Cope2, Indie84, and Marka27.  The Bic Launch tour concludes on August 22nd (5-8 PM) @ Rotofugi in Chicago with signings by Jesse Hernandez and Marka27.

 

Crewest
110 Winston St.
Los Angeles, CA 90013
213.627.8272

Toy Tokyo
121 2nd Ave 2F.
NYC, NY 10003
212.673.5424

Rotofugi
1953 W. Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
312.491.9501

Release Party for Travis Louie’s Curiosities (7.28)

Gallery 1988 LA  will host a Release Party/Signing for Travis Louie’s new Curiosities art book tonight, 7.28 from 6 to 9 PM. Published by Baby Tattoo books the new volume is available in four different editions, each with a different cover.  For tonight’s release, the standard edition (above) as well as the Gallery1988 exclusive edition (100 pcs) which comes with a signed and numbered ‘Pumpkin Eater’ print (below) will be available – each for $30. 

Gallery 1988
7020 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90038
323.937.7088

Seen: Nathan Hamill’s Boris Launch Party

Nathan Hamill launched Boris (U1 Toy Arts) , his first designer vinyl figure, at Meltdown on Friday night surrounded by custom versions of his racoon creation.  The first character in the Picnic Land series, Boris stands 2.5” tall and was sculpted by David Kawano.   Vinyl Pulse dropped by the launch event which was quite lively and pretty crowded.  As a nice touch, two Boris related wall murals added ambience to the event.

As a way of celebrating his new toy as well as the tremendous artistic talent in Los Angeles, Nathan asked fifteen artists to customize Boris including Steven Daily, Lola, Amanda Visell, Joe Ledbetter and Michelle Valigura.  The pieces are quite affordable with most available for $100. 

While you might be tempted to write off Boris as yet another cute animal figure, he deserves a 2nd look – there’s some complexity to the figure especially evident in the facial expression.  And if you’re wondering, yes…. Nathan is the son of Skywalker.

Continue reading "Seen: Nathan Hamill’s Boris Launch Party"

Nathan Hamill – Boris Launch + Customs (7.17)

Nathan Hamill will release Boris, the first of several figures in his Picnic Land series tomorrow night – Friday, July 17th (7-10 PM) @ Meltdown.  To celebrate the launch, Nathan has asked several artists to customize his new vinyl friend.  Here’s a look at customs from Amanda Visell (left) and Michelle Valigura (right).

Meltdown
7522 Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles CA 90046
323.851.7223

Seen: Bloc28 Mickey in Hong Kong

With an opening with little or no equals –  Disney’s Bloc28 Mickey in Hong Kong’s Time Square has raised the standard for top-flight art toy exhibitions and releases. Drawing a large crowd of onlookers, collectors and media, the opening’s festivities featured guest artist David Flores as well as appearances by popular Asian models, celebrities, b-boy crew and more.   The welcome presentation concluded with an elaborate ribbon cutting ceremony capped off with a confetti drop.  Far and beyond typical expectations for a toy release/exhibition.

The event marking the introduction of Disney's Bloc28 project in Asia, featured the release of the first Season 2 vinyl figures from MINDstyle -- Tenga's thumbs-up, high-flying Mickey and Suiko's melting interpretation of the most famous mouse of all.  The figures translate the Japanese artists' takes on Mickey to 3D with figures that expand the possibilities of the medium. 

The exhibition does an excellent job of capturing the energy and spirit of the first two seasons of the Bloc28 project  by highlighting new visions of Mickey Mouse from the Project Artists.  At the heart of the project are the artists' interpretations of Mickey beginning with the original artwork on display that is the basis for the product line which features  all manner of apparel and accessories as well many other items including notebooks, mouse pads and more.  

In conjunction with the celebration of both Mickey's legacy and his future, 3Mix presented Mickey Brand Halo custom show featuring 50 artist customs of a special DIY figure.  The well-designed display system really shows off the customs to full effect by providing easy viewing from both sides of transparent walls of 'cages'.  One of the nicest display arrangements we've seen so far.

The Bloc28 Mickey exhibition also serves as a charitable effort to benefit the 'Art in Hospital' program through the auction of the Mickey customs as well as the sparkly Swarovski covered David Flores Mickey VCDs.  Additionally, Times Square and 3Mix created an exclusive limited-edition Mickey vinyl to encourage visitors to support the local economy and to donate to the charity.

We came away impressed with the event and hoping to see similar high-profile toy events in the USA.  Wishful thinking perhaps, but it would certainly help to increase awareness for the exciting  medium we all love.

Continue reading "Seen: Bloc28 Mickey in Hong Kong"

Bard Hole Standal -- The Birth of Deinos (7.15)

Hi all, this is a first for Vinyl Pulse -- our first post written from China (just a short visit).  On to the news... Norwegian artist Bard Hole Standal will release the first five pieces of his original Deinos resin figure at his solo show, appropriately titled 'The Birth of Deinos' (flier) on July 15th 2009 @ Ouchi Gallery in Brooklyn.   Bard has been steadily working on Deinos  since spring of this year -- starting with a 3D model and moving on to a rapid proto printed in LA and then to the labor-intensive process of casting, cleaning up and painting the figures. 

Deinos stands 5" tall, has an articulated head, and currently takes form in five colorways: black, red, purple, orange, and yellow.  The Bard plans to make five of each colorway, but due to the time involved, he may end up making fewer of each.

Ouchi Gallery
170 Tillary Street Suite 507
Brooklyn, NY 11201

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Gama-Go x Joe Ledbetter T-Shirt Revealed (07.02)

Gama-Go revealed images of the T-shirt that will be released during Joe Ledbetter’s “Creatures of Habit” book signing that we last mentioned here. These limited edition t-shirts will be available this Thursday, July 2nd at the Gama-Go shop in SF just for the special event. The signing will take place from 5:30-8:30 PM. Both book and T-shirt will be sold together for only $30, which is an amazing deal!

Nathan Hamil – Boris Launch @ Meltdown Comics (7.17)

Nathan Hamil will release his Boris mini-fig, the first in his Picnic Land series, on Friday July 17th 2009 (7-10 PM) @ Meltdown. Drop by to pickup the mischievous purple one and meet Nathan (who yes, is the son of Skywalker).

Meltdown Comics
7522 Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles CA 90046
323.851.7223