ToyCyte: Toy Culture Collected

WHAT IS IT?

Whether your Mondays are manic or you just don’t like ‘em, the beginning of each week is not customarily cheerful. With the help of a vigilant community of customizers, ToyCyte wants to change that. Presenting custoMONDAY: Something reliably fresh and fun to look forward to and start your week off right.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Every other Monday, ToyCyte profiles an artist who is making original or customized toys. It might be someone you know, and it might be someone you’ll soon be hearing about. We’ll tell you a bit about the artist and where to get his/her warez. Best part of all? At the close of the two-week interval, the artist picks a ToyCyte reader to receive a custom or one-off toy. To be eligible for the contest, readers just post a comment on that week’s post. Each artist decides how to choose the winner. Could be entirely random or they might make you work for it.  Past custoMONDAY contents have involved everything from coming up with a name for the toy to guessing what the artist ate for breakfast.

WHAT’S IN IT FOR ARTISTS?

Each custoMONDAY artist will have a premium spot on our sidebar designed by ToyCyte’s Creative Director, and our Editor-n-Chief will conduct a brain-probing interview. We will also link to your blog, site, Flickr, etsy shop, Big Cartel, whatever you want. custoMONDAY puts your art in front of  thousands of dedicated toy fans each day. Media attention to custoMONDAY contests can also become viral. We were particularly proud of an artist who caught the notice of BoingBoing. Art and style websites in various countries quickly followed.

custoMONDAY is just the tip of the iceberg. We love our custoMONDAY crew and attempt to return their generosity with priority posting of their news and shows.  We will soon be offering custoMONDAY artists some exciting opportunities, so stay tuned. Above all, ToyCyte wants to help facilitate the transition from “emerging” to “established” artists.

Want to get involved? Drop me a line.

WHAT’S IN IT FOR TOY FANS?

Take a gander through previous custoMONDAYs and see if you still have this question. The short answer is: exclusive vinyl, resin, plastic, plush and clay toys shipped to your door just for reading ToyCyte. Here are a couple of our 2008 winners.