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Unlike licensed MDs, Doktor A doesn’t keep us waiting long. Friday’s mysterious Mechtorians missive is now explained: Mr. Head is decked out in his mourning attire of velvet black, regal purple and steel (slightly rusted but no-one seems to mind). Each one of the edition of 20 is hand painted by Doktor A himself. Each piece [...]
Continue reading...Friday, May 1, 2009
What’s this then? Just a morning Mechtorians missive from the enigmatic Doktor A. Details to follow.
Continue reading...Thursday, April 16, 2009
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Doktor A’s Mini Mechtorians are now available through his own Spookypop store. Individual figures are about $15 USD and the full set of six is about $90. In other words, the same as retail–but with the added satisfaction of supporting the artist directly. Doktor A will also sign the boxes upon request. Great figures in [...]
Continue reading...Friday, April 3, 2009
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If you had any doubt that The Addams Family lacked current cultural relevance, I direct you to the fact that its theme song is a very popular ringtone indeed. I love these two paintings by Doktor A. Each is acrylic on wood in an antiqued resin frame measuring 6 x 8 inches for $420. Check [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, March 26, 2009
On Monday, we began a conversation about blind box toys, and we started at the source: the toy companies. Kidrobot and MINDstyle both said that their fans enjoy the blind box experience. On Tuesday, we talked to the fans and reaction was split: with casual fans liking the fun experience and serious collectors experiencing the blind frustration. Wednesday’s topic was toy stores--largely in favor of blind boxes, but also presenting alternatives. That got me wondering: Do toy artists enjoy the blind box experience? Here are Doktor A, Joe Ledbetter, David Horvath, Jon Burgerman, MCA, Huck Gee, Sket One and Buff Monster (who have over 20 blind box series between them) on the topic.
Continue reading...Tuesday, March 24, 2009
During yesterday’s segment, we profiled designer toy companies for our report on blind boxes. Today, it's all about the end users of blind boxes: the fans. Toy fans echo the diversity of the toys. We enjoy different aesthetics and buying styles. Some people care about edition size; some don't. Some fans like vinyl; some prefer resin. But all of us are a little crazy. We're in an economic recession, and we're buying toys. Let's look at what toy fans want and the possible ways of getting it.
Continue reading...Friday, March 6, 2009
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Well, fans of Doktor A didn’t really think it would be so easy as to snatch up a complete window-boxed set of his mini-Mechtorians, did we? MINDstyle has revealed the golden ticket figures we alluded to earlier this week. These are the official images of the Lucky Draw prizes being awarded to winning ticket holders. [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, March 5, 2009
We love Doktor A and Gallery1988, so the only sad thing about their pairing up as part of the Transcenders group show is that it’s showing in the LA Gallery, not the SF Gallery, where we could peep it with our own eyes. Luckily, G1988 always blogs up their shows for all to see. Following [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, March 3, 2009
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Doktor A’s mini-mechtorians are here! And cheers to the Dok and MINDstyle for making minis awesome again. This is the first wave of mini-mechs, and it contains the six characters: DJ Gramo, Mr. Head, Sentry Wheel, Sir Shilling Copperpenny, Skuttler and a teeny tiny Stephan LePodd. This line from the Mechtorians site is (gramophone) music [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Gino Joukar, a Los Angeles-based pop surrealism and urban art collector, is curating Movers & Shakers, a group show with an amazing roster. For a Valentine’s Day date that seeks to go beyond dinner and a movie, POVevolving Gallery is the locale. There are over 80 artists involved, and a sampling reads like a who’s [...]
Continue reading...Friday, February 6, 2009
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Are you as terrible as me about pre-orders? Smart people just take the plunge and lock it in. What are the rest of us waiting for? ToyQube currently has Doktor A’s Mechtorian Mini Figures Series 1 up for pre-order for $89.94 here. MINDstyle has painstakingly recreated the mechanical citizens of Retropolis in great detail. The [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, February 4, 2009
We are just days away from New York Comic Con 2009. For everybody trying to keep track of the exclusives and events, here's some help. You can also get up-to-the-minute info by clicking on ToyCyte's NYCC 09 Exclusive tag. There are some really great toys in this convention. Check out figures by Doktor A, MAD, Bob Conge, Kathie Olivas, Brandt Peters, Brent Nolasco, KaNO, Julie West, Jure Gavran, Pushead, Mike Sutfin, Secret Base, Monstrehero, Sket One, Erick Scarecrow, Jared Deal, Keith Poon and not to mention appearances by Huck Gee, Clutter and Mr. Shane Jessup, among others. Our east coast correspondent, Collin David, will be on the scene, so flag him down if you see him. Stay tuned for more coverage of NYCC on ToyCyte as it unfolds. Have fun, and don't spend all your rent money!
Continue reading...Monday, February 2, 2009
Overworked multi-taskers are often fond of using the phrase “we wear a lot of hats.” The same can also be said of Doktor A’s Stephan Le Podd. Check out Stephan’s latest hat in The Parlour Room NYCC exclusive version (limited to only a 100 pieces worldwide). Toy Tokyo Booth #858 will have a limited amount [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, January 22, 2009
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Here they are! 17 blind boxed, new Kidrobot Dunnys by UK artists including Clutter, Doktor A, Frames, HiCalorie x Julie West, ilovedust, Jon Burgerman, Keanan Duffty, McFaul, Mimic, Peskimo, Shok 1, Tado, Triclops and UAMOU. The series drops January 22nd for $7.95 each. Thanks to great photos by Future Plastik!
Continue reading...Thursday, January 15, 2009
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I’d call myself a cephalophiliac, but you might get the wrong idea – so, let’s just say that I really enjoy tentacled seacreatures in the most platonic way possible. None of that ‘eight arms to hold you’ stuff. Doktor A’s handsome Stephan Le Podd is among them. This week, we see the slightly later-than-expected release of [...]
Continue reading...Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Groups shows are great because invariably you go to see the work of a particular artist you like (Doktor A, Alex Pardee, MCA, Dan Goodsell, Blinky) and you come away with a list of new artists to check out. This particular incarnation of Gallery1988’s Under the Influence is great, because, well, it’s the Beastie Boys. [...]
Continue reading...Friday, January 2, 2009
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Following the Gentleman’s Club VTN-exclusive Stephan Le Podd, Doktor A now brings us this striking black and red colorway, called Sweeny Podd. The newest MINDstyle Mechtorian is an Asian Exclusive, and rumored to be a very small run at that. Doktor A weighed in on the conundrum of countless colorways with this refreshing perspective on SpankyStokes: My [...]
Continue reading...Thursday, December 18, 2008
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I realize I’m mostly alone in my love of mini-figures. My question to everyone else is where are you getting the money and space for big vinyl? Some of the mini-figure backlash is undoubtedly QC-related, but with mini-figures from MINDstyle, it’s really not something to worry about. Earlier this year, MINDstyle announced the forthcoming release [...]
Continue reading...Wednesday, December 10, 2008
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I think this is the most exciting Dunny series for me in the history of Kidrobot. The upcoming “proper nice” set features 17 blind boxed, 3-inch figures by the likes of Clutter, Doktor A, Frames, HiCalorie x Julie West, ilovedust, Jon Burgerman, Keanan Duffty, McFaul, Mimic, Peskimo, Shok 1, Tado, Triclops and UAMOU. The series [...]
Continue reading...Monday, December 8, 2008
Vinyl Toy Network Winter 2008 was a lot of fun and a great opportunity to chat with artists, toy companies, shops, fans and collectors. People were lined up hours in advance to get a crack at exclusive art toys by Joe Ledbetter, Kathie Olivas, Frank Kozik, Gary Ham, Doktor A, MAD, Marka27 and others. Customized [...]
Continue reading...Monday, December 8, 2008
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Here’s just a sampling of some of the exclusives from the VTN Winter 08 show. (Click here for a tidy tagged version of all the coverage.) People who had been waiting in line for hours got right to business locating these particular figures. It seemed to me like much of the crowd got in, got [...]
Continue reading...Monday, November 24, 2008
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Doktor A will be dropping an exclusive “shriner” Mechtorian at next month’s Vinyl Toy Network. The limited Stephan LePodd figure stands 8 inches tall and features the “Gentleman’s Club” colorway and a fine fez hat. The standard edition of Stephan is limited to 300 pieces, so expect a very exclusive engagement of this edition indeed.
Continue reading...Monday, November 10, 2008
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MINDstyle’s email referred to the Doktor A figure you see above as its “finest lineup of art toy collectible figures.” WOW, coming from MINDstyle, who, I feel, puts out some consistently quality art toys, that’s saying a lot. If this figure looks familiar, it’s because ten resin paint masters (below) of these guys were released [...]
Continue reading...Friday, October 31, 2008
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Many moons ago, when ToyCyte first kicked off, Jeremi Rimel contacted me with his Think-UP Do-It-Yourself Bust. He sent me a Think-UP, we chatted about some things and then we lost touch. In the meantime, busts got big. Recently I saw Doktor A's Think-UP creation at the Monster Art Rally, Jeremi got back in touch, and here's the lost interview (now found), right in time for Halloween. Think-UP is produced by Jeremi's company, Miscreation Toys. The white vinyl busts are 8 inches tall and come in standard and "with tentacles" editions. Master monster-makers like Bob Conge have customized this unique platform. The humanoid head/creature base is ripe for the rendering. Now without further ado, here's Jeremi...and Happy Halloween.
Continue reading...Monday, October 27, 2008
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This weekend saw the opening of the MAD*L Citizens Show at Lift in Detroit. With 10-inch MAD*L customs by Doktor A, Huck Gee, Sket One, kaNO, Brandt Peters, Kathie Olivas, Cris Rose, Slobot, Cameron Tiede, Phetus, Brent Nolasco, Andrew Bell, Angry Woebots, Phu!, Tristan Eaton, Julie West, Reactor 88, Leecifer and more, I’m waiting on [...]
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Monday, May 4, 2009
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