ToyCyte: Toy Culture Collected

Elusive is a word that Thomas Han uses to describe his artwork. It can also be used to describe him as an artist. He doesn’t do a lot of interviews, and he mostly stays out of the spotlight. If you believe everything you read on the internet, you wouldn’t know how to describe Thomas Han. Some say that he’s a cool guy, and others say that he’s not so nice to his fans. Who is the real Thomas Han?

I got the chance to interview him at Munky King in LA. As we chatted in the back gallery, he opened up about his art and his life. He discussed his influences, his creative process, his upcoming Pusher show, and even the topic of internet rumors. There is more to Thomas Han than his cutely bizarre artwork.

ToyCyte: When you started your art career, did you think you’d get into the vinyl toy world?

Thomas Han: I didn’t think I was but I wanted to. I don’t know if anybody knows this but me and Joe Ledbetter worked together at a graphic design company doing junior’s girls’ t-shirts. We were doing monkeys saying I’m hot and basically making girls look really slutty. We also played in a band together, and he was already showing in a group show that happens in LA every other month called Cannibal Flower. One day we were jamming at my house, and I was doodling. He said, have you ever thought about showing your work?

And I said, really? I never thought I could. I did a quick piece, and our pieces sold automatically. Ever since then it’s been a big tumbling ball. We’ve been riding it without really thinking about it. When we started getting some more art shows, the opportunities came from people wanting to do toys or products.

I guess our characters translate well on toys. They decided to give us a try, and people liked it. I think the most fun I had in the beginning was doing the Dunnys and the Qees. The 8″ Painkiller Dunny was a ridiculous success and boosted my confidence.

TC: It was. Are there any plans to do another Dunny?

HAN: I’m going to be in the next one - series 6. The one that just came out is already done. I’m actually coming out with…I don’t know if I should be saying this…with a 20″ Dunny.

TC: Wow. How limited will that one be?

HAN: That will probably be like 100. The design is really kick ass and I’m really proud of it.

TC: How do you feel about the way your Pushers were translated into vinyl?

HAN: I think it was perfect! Munky King did a really good job. They were really artistically and creatively friendly, and they let me do whatever I wanted to do on them. When they did turnaround, they did turnarounds physically. We went back and forth until it was right. It worked out really well for me.

TC: Was it your decision to make the Animal Pusher [magenta] ultra-limited? There are only 20 out there.

HAN: Yeah, I was always into limited edition stuff. I felt like the last one should be more sought after. It was just a fun thing to do.

TC: Does that mean that one’s your favorite?

HAN: Yeah. (laughing) It’s the cutest one.

TC: I agree. Whose idea was it to make DIY Pushers?

HAN: It was actually both of us [referring to Patrick Lam]. I was always into customs and seeing other people do their own version of a toy. Like the Qees and the Dunnys. And when I saw that, I thought, wow, why not? The shape of the Pusher and the curves - it’s very fun to do your own rendition.

TC: Did you see Peekaboo’s custom out front?

HAN: Yeah. Peekaboo is a homie, and he always rocks shit really well. He did a really good job. Speaking of, we’re coming out with a custom Pusher show very soon. I have a lot of people on board. Mostly my friends like Tim Biskup, Gary Baseman, Alex Pardee, Nathan Jurevicius, Camille Rose Garcia, a lot of big names. A lot of people I’ve known in the past and now.

TC: Please tell me it’ll be in LA.

HAN: It is in LA. We’ve sent out the Pushers to quite a few people, and they’re working on it as we speak. It’s definitely going to be something fun. I want to look at the rough drafts of some of the pieces before I decide the overall theme for the show.

TC: Going back to your artwork, I just saw your piece at the I am 8-Bit art show. I actually had to look up the game you referenced: Darkstalkers. Are you a gamer?

HAN: I’m particularly into certain games. Stuff with heavy character design like Darkstalkers, Super Mario brothers, anything with a lot of kooky, crazy characters as well as a lot of colors. Fantasy stuff really gets to me.

TC: I can’t remember where I read it, but one of your pieces was described as having “Thomas Han colors.” Do you think you have a certain color scheme?

HAN: When I first started, I definitely loved bright colors: pastel-y, sea foam green, pink, magentas. I guess that’s just me. When I was young, I definitely loved Japanese candy wrappers and animation. The bright colors really stuck to me. Subconsciously every piece I did included bright colors. I definitely think colors describe a certain mood. The stuff that I like to talk about in my paintings is usually elusive, fun, and crazy. Now with the work I’m doing, I’m using more muted colors and using bright colors as an accent.

TC: You just mentioned animation. When I see your artwork, I always wondered if you’re into anime.

HAN: Definitely! When I was growing up, it was Astro-Boy, Doraemon, Saint Saens, and of course Robotech. Akira was one of the first animation movies that really blew my mind. That’s actually how I got the “pills,” and that’s the reference of that. When I got older, it was stuff like Ninja Scroll and Samurai X. Miyazaki is ridiculously a big influence on me.

TC: Where else do your creatures come from?

HAN: Literally a lot of my stuff comes in dreams. A lot of it comes from looking at shapes. I’ll spill some Coke on the floor and it’ll splatter. And that splatter will turn into an organic shape and I trace it out. I let the shape tell me what it is. I render the shape and it’ll start to look like a turtle or a weird creature. And it’s really fun that way. It lets the art take over you.

TC: I take it you’re prolific in that way.

HAN: I love that people say that, and it’s great. I am in that sense. My working process used to be different before. I had a word called “tra-digital” - from digital to traditional. Basically I would hand-draw stuff, scan it into the computer, trace out on the computer, get the color right, and the rendering and the line work I wanted. Then I’d print it out and trace it on a board and work from there.

As I get older, different influences play in my head. Now I’m doing more traditional work that’s straight acrylic on board. It’s been a really fun, practice of workmanship. I feel like I’m getting older and mature through my work.

TC: You don’t do a lot of interviews, and you don’t really promote yourself on the internet. Do you ever read what’s written about you?

HAN: There are a lot of bad stuff and rumors that have been written about me. And it just sucks. It was a point of time in my life when no one was helping me and I was really young. I was more focused on painting and the art side of things, and business wasn’t really my thing. It was also wrong timing. I had a lot of personal stuff I was dealing with.

Now I’m not afraid to say that I’ve been to rehab. A lot of personal stuff that happened to me along the lines made me stray away. It wasn’t that I wasn’t giving a fuck about people. It was like, wow, my life could be ending and I really don’t care about anything. One week turned into two months, and it just felt that way. Luckily I had friends, and I was aware of the problems.

And I tried to rectify it. I said sorry publicly on the forum. I included what I thought was a good way of saying sorry. I did hand sketches for every order that was late, and I sent it to them. I feel sorry and I felt bad. There’s nothing else I can do except be a better person and be more aware of the outside and surroundings of me that I affect.

TC: For every negative comment, there are several positive comments.

HAN: There are a lot of fans out there that still back me up. They’re not trying to put the artist to the art. People talk good stuff. If you like it, you like it; you don’t know me personally.

Anybody who’s met me, who’s hung out with me, who’s talked to me, knows that I’m a good person and I wear my heart on my sleeve. I really care. I’ve said numerous times to people, to fans, in person, on email - if it wasn’t for the fans, I wouldn’t have a career. I wouldn’t be here right now, and I’m so appreciative. Like me for my art. If they want to know me, then get to know me. But don’t get crazy.

TC: What’s on the horizon?

HAN: I have a few group shows lined up. A couple of international shows and two-man shows. I also have a solo show in 2009 at Corey Helford Gallery. That’s going to be really cool. Right now I’m working on big bodies of work for it. Usually I do a lot of small stuff, nothing bigger than 18 x 24. These pieces that I’m working on for the solo show will be a lot bigger. Maybe door panel size.

This last year I’m really working on myself, my art, and getting out there. Hopefully everything will come to a full circle.

* * * * *

After the interview, we stood on Melrose while Han took a cigarette break. We chatted for a while about Korean food, hipsters at art shows, Robotech, and the significance of tight pants. It turns out that Thomas Han is just a down-to-earth, creative guy with a nerdy side. He is currently working on his website ThomasHanArt.com, and we look forward to seeing more from him in the near future.

Photos by Rodger Revilla

Artwork pictures are from Thomas Han’s Myspace, and product photos are from Munky King.

Special thanks to Patrick Lam for letting us borrow Munky King’s gallery.

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