ToyCyte sale!
We've slashed our prices for a lot of our toys to make room for more customs! Go get some amazing deals today at our store !
<-->
Hooray! He’s back. I’ve missed writing about Jailbreak Toys’ Obama Action Figure so much. Here’s a double-dose of news for the most political man in plastic. 1) Jailbreak is sponsoring an awesome Obama toy photography contest and 2) They are currently producing a Michelle Obama Action Figure! While we wait to see how they model [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, January 22, 2009
Before their were toys, there was an image. On the same day Barack Obama got the official Democratic nomination for President, Upper Playground dropped Ron English’s Abraham Obama poster. Jetset Graffiti then licensed the image for use in an open edition less expensive print which quickly minted a new crew of street artists. Although Ron’s [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Lots of people have been asking about Dragon in Dream’s 1/6 scale Barack Obama action figure that we first reported on here. I’m happy to say that you can still get the incredibly realistic action figure for the same pre-presidential price of $69.99 (including shipping) here. The DiD Corp specializes in realistic hair and clothing, [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Comments Off
Chris Yates, who we recently wrote up for his puzzling collab with Andrew Bell, tipped me off to his latest hand-crafted wooden Baffler! puzzle, “Hope,” currently up for auction on eBay. This is the third and final edition of “Hope” based on Shepard Fairey’s iconic design. The first debuted at SDCC this summer (amidst Yates’ [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Comments Off
2008 was a dream year for a toy journalist. A handful of really awesome action figures and art pieces joined otherwise apolitical armies of Dunnys and Qees in homes across the world. Jailbreak Toys, already known for their short, but smart Oddfellows figures, unleashed a battalion of 6-inch Barack Obama action figures onto the scene. MINDstyle partnered with Ron English to create a series of vinyl busts based on Ron's Abraham Obama imagery. GAMA-GO, (whose wooden Deathbot bore an uncanny resemblance to John McCain), released three sell-out runs of their popular Yeti-bama T-shirts. This is all just a fraction of the great art and terrific toys we saw in 2008. We'll be posting news of toy sales and toy-related inauguration events all week long.
Continue reading...Friday, January 16, 2009
I totally live for all this Obama-inspired art, but I gotta call foul on this one. At this point, I’ve lost track of how many colorways of Ron English x MINDstyle’s Abraham Obamas have come out. The black bust was exciting and the pewter colorway kind of cool, but this “inauguration version” kind of [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, January 6, 2009
I really missed covering the exciting cross-pollination of politics and playtime that was Jailbreak Toys Obama Action Figure (see all the artist customs from last year at this tag). So I was thrilled to see a revival of sorts hit my inbox this morning. Jailbreak Toys is gearing up to release two limited edition production Obama action figures: an Inaugural version and a Hope version.
Continue reading...Monday, December 8, 2008
Comments Off
There were tons of great toys to see at VTN, but this was my favorite juxtaposition of toys. Casually paired up at the 3DRetro/MINDstyle area was one of Paul Pope’s Playmates and John Kricfalusi’s Barack Obamas. Pulphope indeed!
Continue reading...Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Comments Off
Looks like Ron English isn’t above some Kozik-esque colorways as the range of MINDstyle’s Abraham Obama busts continues to expand. Via Freshness this morning: Barracuda has teamed up with the original collaborators to create a special bust in pewter/metal finish. The bust is available exclusively through Barracuda with the current pre-order priced at $200 USD. I’m still [...]
Continue reading...Friday, November 14, 2008
I guess it’s like apples and oranges, but when you compare the Hero Builders Sarah Palin 12-inch action figure that got so much press to DiD (Dragon in Dream) Corp’s 12-inch Barack Obama action figure that hasn’t gotten so much press yet, you are rendered kind of speechless. I don’t collect 1/6 scale action figures and I enjoy a [...]
Continue reading...Friday, November 7, 2008
Comments Off
Did you notice that during the last couple months of the presidential campaign that Shepard Fairey’s iconic Obama Hope was everywhere? On posters, on stickers, on T-shirts on buttons and I’m sure tattooed on someone’s bicep. It’s amazing how prevalent Fairey’s stunning work has become in popular culture. A segment about his piece was even done by Katie [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Comments Off
History was made last night, and many people the world over woke up this morning proud of America for the first time in eight years. MINDstyle and Ron English would like to commemorate this momentous occasion with the vinyl fusion of two “skinny presidents from Illinois:” Barack Obama and Abraham Lincoln. As blogged yesterday, [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, November 5, 2008
You thought Kaws‘ pieces were expensive? Well, move over 4 ft Kaws, you’re about to get schooled in pricey by a Cabbage Patch Kid. Yes, a Cabbage Patch Kid. Ending yesterday, on Election day, the auctions on ebay for the one-of-a-kind custom Sarah Palin, Barack Obama, John McCain and Joe Biden handcrafted dolls came to a close. So what [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Comments Off
MINDstyle chose Election Day 2008 to announce Ron English’s Abraham Obama 16″ vinyl bust sculpted by Vin Teng. The bust is based on the Ron English’s Abraham Obama poster that is a Pop-inspired bit of street art. The white MINDstyle’s member’s only version is already sold out. The edition size of each colorway is limited [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, October 30, 2008
John K, [tagged] whose unique animation gave me gross-out gags to grow up with, put his talents and critiques into a set of three Presidential Candidates figures. He began the concept and the sculpts while Hillary Clinton was still in the race, and she now emerges full of hope and backside in this final version. [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, October 28, 2008
I thought the Pinkerton FX Zombie Hamsters were creepy, well they got nothing on these dolls. The company that makes the Cabbage Patch Kids is celebrating twenty five years of misleading children about their origin (yeah, come on…babies born in a cabbage patch, we all know that storks bring us home). And how does the [...]
Continue reading...Monday, October 27, 2008
Comments Off
The first stage of the two-part auction for the custom pieces was held during the exhibition and was a huge success. The second, online auction phase began Friday with many additional groundbreaking custom works available for bidding. The ART + ACTION online auction will be held for one week only on eBay, with proceeds going [...]
Continue reading...Monday, October 20, 2008
Sucklord and his Obama Jedi were there from the beginning. "What stood out for me was how many people outside of the normal designer toy scene were there and how moved they were by the presentation. I've said it all along, but it seems that the idea is catching on. Toy design is a compelling medium to make a meaningful and nuanced statement."
Continue reading...Friday, October 17, 2008
The 2008 US Presidential Election will be a historic and groundbreaking event. While the race and gender of the candidates is unprecedented, so is the huge outpouring of art. The latter can be seen tonight in NYC at ToyTokyo's The Showroom where Jailbreak Toys presents an evening of customized Barack Obama action figures by Brin Berliner, Damion Silver, Bigfoot, Denise Despirito, Leecifer, kaNO, Brent Nolasco, Matt Hawkins, Brian Colin, Dionysus Cho, Erick Scarecrow Jeaux Janovsky and more. Regardless of how you lean politically, a show of this nature has never before been attempted. All figures will be for sale with proceeds going to fund the Campaign for Change. You can look back at all the coverage of ART + ACTION = Obama 08 here, or scroll down for our exclusive pictorial. ToyCyte's NYC correspondent will be bringing us coverage of the show, so stay tuned. Tonight's event begins at 7PM EST. There's a rumor that Amber, the Obama Girl, may make an appearance. Wish I could be there.
Continue reading...Friday, October 17, 2008
Comments Off
Brin Berliner should need no introduction in our humble community since undoubtedly you’ve got several of his pieces in your collection. He’s the unnamed force behind figures by MARS-1, Ron English, SEEN, Jermaine Rogers, Frank Kozik, SuperDeux, Gary Baseman and tokidoki, but like a Stewart Copeland to a Sting, Brin is not always a household [...]
Continue reading...Friday, October 17, 2008
Sketch for Change is a project comprised of sketches by Joe Ledbetter, Tim Biskup, Amanda Visell, Jeff Soto, Bob Dob, Gary Baseman, Thomas Han, Shag, Glenn Barr, Luke Chueh and about a dozen other artists culled from the 'lowbrow' scene. The idea was cooked up by a group of friends in Los Angeles looking for unique ways to help raise funds for Barack Obama's Campaign for Change. The 21 artists were affiliated with the recent Baby Tattooville art retreat.
Continue reading...Thursday, October 16, 2008
We at ToyCyte are big fans of the art of Mike Leavitt. Back in July in this interview, I called it that Obama would want to bring the troops home, but enlist himself in the Art Army. And Mike’s figure doesn’t disappoint. Says Mike: “The figurine suggests new and old surrealism. Obama is “The One” [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Comments Off
OK, I’m usually not one to be dramatic, but this is really off-the-hook. Artist and animator Jeaux Janovsky has injected a dose of viral YouTube mayhem into his Obama custom action figure. Amber (more commonly known as The Obama Girl), who calls our next president “B,” plants one on the action figure’s back. With the [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Comments Off
The second Obama custom action figure for this morning is also a paper toy from master paper toy crafter, Matt Hawkins. Ironically, this is the first plastic toy that Matt has ever customized, stylizing the action figure and giving him a papercraft White House mecha. You may recall Matt’s previous Barack Obama papercraft, the free, [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, October 15, 2008
So cool. This morning’s Obama custom action figure sneak previews are both paper toys, and this one comes to us from second-year Canadian college student, Dionysus Cho. He threw out all the rhetoric of politics and focused on what matters most: “Not wealth or power. We must see broader than our own country, but reach [...]
Continue reading...
Friday, May 29, 2009
2 Comments