Royal Guard Teddy Troop

So while I work on commission art, I try to work on a small, personal piece at the same time just to break things up a bit. Figuring I've got commissions lined up easily until the end of 2008, if I don't work on a few things for myself once in a while I'd go crazy. With that said, here's my latest "me" piece- a 4-inch custom Teddy Troop based on those famous English Royal Guards. This was one of those projects I'd had on my list for a while, I'd just never gotten around to working on it. I had kind of forgotten about this, and then I saw a photo of a royal guardsmen and the idea popped back into my head. I was hoping I'd be able to get the flocking on the helmet a little bit "shaggier", but I was happy with the way it turned out. This little guy will be going up in my web store pretty soon- he'd make a great late holiday gift :)

New Interview Up

I did an interview for the Custom Toy World website. Custom Toy World is a toy website created by Wonderworks, a design firm located in the Netherlands. The founder, Daan is an avid toy collector and owns a few of my customs. With that said, you can read my interview here.

The Artist Formerly Known As...

So I finally got around to changing my username on the Kidrobot Discussion Board. Okay, so you didn't even know I wanted to change my name huh? Well, here's the story.
Back when I first joined the KR board in early 2006, I wanted to stick with a username I could easily remember. Well, since I used "ryanc44" for my Yahoo IM name/email (yes, now all you stalkers will be able to find me on IM now), I figured I'd use a modified version of that- hence rc44 was born.
Fast forward to about a year ago- as I started getting some recognition for my art and custom work through the board, I realized that my username is what people remembered me by, not necessarily by my real name. Then one day I just decided to Google "rc44" to see what popped up. Low and behold I had a few entries on the search results, but the majority were all about a racing sailboat. Huh? Yeah, that's what I was saying to myself. Anyway, I didn't give it much thought beyond that, and it faded away.
So fast forward to about two months ago. I started to notice that a few old people on the Kidrobot discussion board seemed to have new names. Now it didn't appear that they had created brand new accounts all over again, but in turn their old accounts had been updated with new names. This got me thinking. Why not see if I could get my current "sailboat" username updated to something actually meaningful- like my website name? Now that's an idea... So as of today, rc44 will only be known as a sailboat, and reactor88 is now the guy on the Kidrobot Discussion Board that makes the Spade-Skull custom toys. Yeah, I figure it will confuse some people for a little bit, but that small setback will be worth it in the long run. Heaven forbid I decide to change the name of my website on day...

Miscellaneous Updates

With the sheer ease of adding new material and pics to this blog, I find that my website updates are fewer and farther between these days. With that said, I just updated my site will all my newest custom toys. And as usual, while spending a few hours processing images and setting it all up on my site, I start thinking about how in dire need my site needs a re-design. It's hard to believe I've had that site up in it's current form for almost 2 years now- in internet/computer time that's an eternity... Anyway, I'm setting a goal to at least have a "signed-off" new site design by the end of the year. Sounds easy enough, but I've been saying that for a few months now. We'll see.

I'm Now A Photojournalist

So Saturday night I went to Shag's Conspicious Consumption show at Billy Shire Fine Arts. The good folks over at Guillotine asked if I'd help them out and take a few pics of the show. Guillotine is a pretty cool French Art/Toy/Sneaker/Lifestyle site that has these neat photo features of artist's studios- that's how I came to be familiar with their site. Anyway, I got to the show early to make sure I could get some good "uncrowded" pics, and shot away with my trusty old point 'n shoot digital camera. You can see the photos here. Not bad if I do say so myself- maybe I have a new career starting here...

Addendum- the good folks over at Vinyl Pulse heard I went to the Shag show as well, so I shared my pics with them too. You can experience deja vu here.

Vinyl Requiem Issue #2

So the kind folks over at Vinyl Requiem asked me if I wanted to submit some photos of my customs for their magazine. A few months later issue number two of their vinyl toy magazine is out and my Aqua Blossom Qee is featured on the cover- sweet. I haven't seen the mag yet, but I'm sure it's pretty cool. It's nice to see my Aqua Blossom getting some love. He's one of my favorite customs that I've done, mainly for the fact that it's so different than what I usually do. Anyway, you can pick up issue two at Lulu Press as either a printed version or a pdf download.

Look What I Found

So I happened to be digging around in my parent's attic and found this cool little metal toy buried under a pile of old tin cans. He's taken quite a beating through the years, but is still holding up. Okay seriously, this is my custom Tofu Robot for the upcoming Tofu Robot show at Robocon. I'd seen a couple of custom toys lately that had this old, worn-out, tin toy style, and it really caught my eye as I definitely enjoy vintage (real and faux) stuff. I'd taken a crack at a "griming" up a toy last year when I made my Recon-bot MadL, so this was just taking it a step further by actually giving it some real scratches, scuffs, and scrapes. I also (for the first time) used some enamel spray paints (from my old model kit days) for the finish, and used some little homemade templates for the designs on the body of the robot. So I definitely explored some new territory with this little guy.
Anyway, the show at Robocon is coming up later this month, so if you're in the area come check it out.

Spade-Skull Labbit

So here's my finished 5-inch Labbit for the upcoming Uberbot Labbit show. I was literally putting a couple finishing touches on it this morning, took these photos, packed it up, and dropped it off at the post office this morning- since the deadline to get it over to them is next Monday. I've been wanting to do a 10-inch custom Labbit for ages, but with the time constraints I was under for this show, a basic Spade-Skull it had to be. Even still, these things take a long time. I had a few issues with the yellow, and since I used a fluorescent orange, once again many, many coats of paint were necessary. In the end, I really liked how this guy turned out- hopefully everyone else will too.

A few more pics of this little guy can be found over on the Kidrobot Discussion Board here.

Sticker Shock

So I finally got some stickers made. I'm not sure why it took so long- probably just blatant procrastination. I've always wanted to make some, but never really knew much about the process, where to go, etc. I guess with the sticker explosion in the last few years and prices coming down for folks like me that don't want a gagillion stickers, it was time to really investigate and get these puppies made. Plus I finally had something I could legitimately make into a sticker- my little Spade-Skull icon. After finding a fairly inexpensive, local sticker place (one of those word of mouth kind of things), I pulled the trigger. I went with some basic, one UV color rounds on white vinyl to start- kind of a trial run thing. Next time I'll probably go die-cut, clear vinyl with crack & peel backings, but since I have 500 of these, next time is gonna be a while. Anyway, these little guys will find there way into all the packages I send out to clients, and who knows where else...

Dawg with Fez & Uberbot Super Labbit Show

It's been a while since I've posted on my blog. Well, I guess two weeks isn't that long compared to some, but for me I like to have some sort of update every week, so it's fair to say I'm slacking. Anyway, I finished this up last week, and I just shipped it off to it's new home in paradise i.e.- Hawaii. Some backstory on "Dawg with Fez." In my quest to get back into traditional painting a few years ago, I made some little "test" paintings of some characters/doodles from my sketchbook just to get the feel of it again. Anyway, someone perusing my website saw the original mini-Dawg painting and inquired about purchasing him. Well, since the masonite panel I painted the original Dawg on wasn't prepared properly, I didn't feel comfortable selling it, as the painting might "disintegrate" in a few years- hence no more Dawg. But I did agree to do a larger, commission for the client based on the original Dawg painting- and so Dawg with Fez was born. I also included a sweet little sketch of a concept for the original Dawg painting from my sketchbook, but like a moron I didn't scan it in before I sent it off- I really need to start to remember documenting my sketches and stuff...

And on a side note, I've reluctantly decided to participate in the Uberbot Super Labbit show slated for late August. I know, I know- I'm so backlogged with commissions and other shows that I would be insane to get involved with another show, but I've really wanted to customize a 5" Labbit ever since they came out, and I love the name Uberbot. Yeah, I'm crazy. So all you on my commission list that have been patiently waiting months and months and months- sorry. Trust me, it'll all be worth the wait...

Love : Hate

So here are my Baby Bunee Qees for the Love : Hate show presented by Subtext and Cardboard Spaceship. So by now some of you are looking at them and probably saying, "where are the skulls?" Well, while I love creating designs based around my Spade-Skull icon, I like to mix things up a bit as well. I've been wanting to do another flocked project ever since I did my holiday custom last year, and I also wanted to do something kind of "cutesy." This little pair of Qees seemed to be the perfect candidates. I think it was very fitting for this show, just for the fact that I figure some people will love these, and some people will hate them- ha. Either way, they were a lot of fun to make (look for more flocked projects in the future.) Even if mine aren't your style, there's a big line-up of artists participating in this show, and I've seen some of the other pieces and they're top notch. So if you're down in San Diego during SDCC this month, take a breather from the convention and check this show out- you won't be disappointed.

My Workspace

Every now and then I like to take a picture of my workspace. It's kind of neat to look at the past pictures and see the projects on the desk, what's on the computer screen, and the various levels of general disarray. Anyway, someone was asking a questioon on the Kidrobot message board about what type of desk/art table, supplies, storage units etc. they should purchase to start on their toy customizing career. Well, I started to type a reply, then I thought- hey, it's been a while since I took a workspace photo, so I did. I then posted the pic, told him how this was probably more of an example of how not to do, and then put in my 2 cents. Anyway, he seemed pretty grateful, so I guess it helped somebody.

Spade-Skull Munny

So I just finished up my custom Spade-Skull Munny for the Lift Footwear Detroit Munny show. The show is this Sat (the 23rd) and pieces were supposed to be there by the 18th, but folks were given a little wiggle room. I think they were a little more flexible with the deadline because this event was organized at the last minute and not much of a heads-up was given to the artists. When I was first asked to participate in this show, I was very hesitant to get on board because of the short notice. But I decided to get on board and see what I could do under the gun. Anyway, my goal was to finish it this weekend (which I did), and it will be out in the mail tomorrow morning headed priority over to Michigan. I'm still quite amazed I was able to finish this in only about 3 weeks- I usually work a lot slower :) I'm also kind of hoping a few folks on my commission list take notice of this piece and pick it up from the show. Mainly because they're on my list for a Spade-Skull Munny, and if they grabbed this guy that would knock someone off my every increasing list. UPDATE- show blurb is up on Vinyl Pulse- nice, my Munny gets a preview alongside of Dok-A's piece- talk about being in good company...

So with this guy complete, it's on to finish up my pair of baby Qee customs for the Love & Hate show next month and hopefully start plugging away at that commission list before it gets unmanageable...

Reactor-88 Update

Since I've been really busy painting toys and canvases for a bunch of upcoming shows and trying to plug away at my commission list, my website has been neglected. So it was about time for a bit of an update. I added my recent Cereal Killers painting to the Artwork section. I also added a Shows and Events section and a Store section. Since I'm participating in a lot of shows this year (and hopefully that will continue) I decided to devote an entire section of my website just to listing all my past, present and future shows/events. Also, since I now have a few items sitting around that aren't sold that might be of interest to some folks, I've decided to put up a store section as well. Note, it's nothing fancy at all- just pics, a price, and who to contact if you want to buy it. Works for me...

Cereal Killers

So the Cereal Killers show was last night at Monkeyhouse Toys. As expected, there were lots of great pieces (mostly paintings, only a couple of custom toys) and there was a pretty good turnout- Monkeyhouse is definitely getting more popular now that they are on the Kidrobot message board radar. A lot of the usual suspects were in attendance, so it was good talking to some of the old regulars. A few of my favorite pieces were Dave Pressler's "Monkey Vomit" painting, and Jenna Colby's "Girl on a Cornflake"- that wasn't the actual name, but whatever. Of course my buddy Lou Pimentel killed his pieces, and since I like the old fashioned-type stuff, Betso's piece definitely caught my eye. So if you're in the Silverlake area, I highly recommend you head over to Monkeyhouse and check out the show- you won't be disappointed. If you can't make it, be sure you check out the show coverage and pics on Vinyl Pulse.

Big thanks to Bil Betsovic (and a Happy Birthday shout out) for inviting me to participate in this show, and of course Mayra at Monkeyhouse Toys for hosting it.

Big Dawg

So when I dropped off my Cereal Killers painting this past Saturday I picked up another 16-inch Qee. I still can't get over how big these things are. The second pic was taken next to my 8-inch Kenzo Dunny just for reference- yeah, I guess it is basically twice as big... Once again it was free, but this one was actually given to me for an upcoming commission. I can't divulge any other details about the project as I always treat my commissions like I'm under an NDA- some folks don't care, but just in case I extend the courtesy. Anyway, I'm really excited to start working on this bad boy. The client has some basic guidelines as far as what they want, but for the most part I can take as much creative freedom as I want with it (I think.) As usual, I'll sketch out some ideas on some Qee templates, and once I'm in agreement with the client the fun will begin. But as usual, this project is still a little bit off on the horizon. I need to finish a couple customs for some upcoming shows, finish a couple of current commissions, then I can begin to brainstorm about this one. I can't wait...

Art Toy Alchemists Show

So last night was the Art Toy Alchemists Show down at Artifact Unmundane. I had no idea there was a place to buy vinyl down in the O.C. until PJ had contacted me and asked me to be in the show. What a hidden gem for the folks down there. It's located in a very industrial area down in Anahiem, probably not where you'd think to find a vinyl shop. Anyway, the turnout was pretty good and there were a lot of great pieces in the show. The highlight of the show was the Mr. Bunny raffle. Now, anyone into vinyl toys knows how sought after a Mr. Bunny is. Well, I don't consider myself a lucky guy so I usually don't enter raffles and such, but the raffle proceedings were going towards helping the Cipriani family (Ava's parents), so I grabbed the last $5 bill I had in my wallet and bought a few tickets. Low and behold, I won the Mr. Bunny! And to think I even questioned whether I wanted to make the drive down to Anahiem for the show- hehe... Anyway, once again there were many great pieces in the show. I think my highlights were Jason Jacenko's Circus Punk, Motorbot's Bunniguru, a Frankenstein Munny, and Daniel Damocles Wall's beautiful flocked Giraffe Dunny. I'm guessing PJ will be putting all the pieces up on his website shortly. There's still lots of pieces for sale. In the meantime, see below for a few of my favorites, and of course a shot of my new Mr. Bunny :)

Detroit Munny Show

So it looks like I'll be participating in the "2nd Annual" (I just made that part up) Detroit Munny Show at Lift Footwear next month. Yeah, next month is coming up fast. I was asked to participate last week, and hesitantly agreed. I usually require a few months (if not longer) of lead time before I'll commit to any show, but at the same time I really enjoy participating when I can, and I figure I can get something together in 3 weeks (I hope.) This might be time for the first ever Spade-Skull Munny- unless I can think of something cooler that I can pull off on short notice.

Upcoming Show Listing

While trying to organize and prioritize my projects, I've been looking over my calendar and realized I'm in quite a few shows coming up pretty soon. Wow, I am really in over my head with this stuff. I need to stop blogging and get to work!

Vinyl Elements
May 17th, 2007
Barracuda (Los Angeles, CA)

Art Toy Alchemists
June 2nd, 2007
Artifact Unmundane (Anahiem, CA)

Cereal Killers
June 9th, 2007
Monkeyhouse Toys (Los Angeles, CA)

Detroit Munny Show
June 23rd, 2007
Lift Footwear (Detroit, MI)

Love and Hate
July (SDCC) 2007
Subtext (San Diego, CA)

Tofu Robot Show
August 2007
Robocon (Los Angeles, CA)

Social Tilt and Urban Vinyl
September 7th, 2007
Arthouse (Calgary, Alberta, Canada)

I think I'm also participating in a custom painted lunchbox show at Monkeyhouse Toys coming up sometime this year. Either that, or a blank metal lunchbox has sprouted from underneath my work table. Okay, enough chit chat- back to work...

Big Rump Vinyl

I got a big rump vinyl DIY Qee Bear on Sunday. First off, you're probably asking why I said "big rump". Well, on the Kidrobot messageboard, they've got some sort of word substitutor that exchanges any "bad" words you type and posts alternate words. Most people swear to evoke some sort of emphasis with what they say, so I find it pretty funny that those words usually get substituted with some sort of toned down version. For instance, ass = rump. So if I were to say Big Ass Vinyl, the message board would translate that to Big Rump Vinyl. Funny. Anyway, I totally digressed there. What you're seeing in the picture is my new buddy- a 16" DIY Qee Bear that (best part) I got for free. Yes free. Well, not quite- I did have to take a painting break on Sunday and drive down to the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica and take part in the "Find the Boo" contest that a fellow Kidrobot message board member put on. Surprisingly, I came in second, but still won the (literally) biggest prize that was offered. Once again, big thanks to Mark (you know who you are) for going out of his way and setting up this fun little Sunday afternoon jaunt.

New Stuff

So I've finally finished up some new customs, so I thought I'd share. Now don't you feel special? First pic- a sneak peak of my piece for the upcoming Vinyl Elements show. I guess I could show the whole thing since no one really reads my blog, but hey, you never know. I don't want to upset Jack... I just packed this up to send over. Hopefully when they receive it they'll take some real pictures of it. My little digital point/shoot just isn't quite up to take studio/product shot-type pictures. The second pic is my Spade-Skull IceBot that I painted for the Art Toy Alchemists show at Artifact Unmundane. Where is this you ask? It's down in Anahiem- yes, I was surprised when I found out there was a vinyl shop in Anahiem too. This world is full of surprises. I'm pretty sure I'll be driving down for the opening night- as long as it's on the weekend. The third pic, are some fun little mini customs I've been working on. I call them my Spade-Skull Metal Series. It sounded cooler than saying Gold, Silver, Copper. Anyway, all three of these little guys sold at my "online preview." It's pretty scary when someone like me is setting up "online previews" by request. Like I said, this world is full of surprises...

Vinyl Elements Show

Vinyl Pulse's big custom vinyl show, VInyl Elements is coming May 17th, 2007. I've seen some sneak peaks of some of the pieces, and by the looks of the artist list this should be a really good show. Here's the details from the Vinyl Pulse website:

Vinyl Elements brings the excitement back on Thursday May 17th @ Barracuda from 7 to 10 PM. The elements the ancient Chinese believed to make up the universe Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth form the show's theme. This classic theme will be interpreted by a select international group of fifty top-flight artists including David Horvath, Frank Kozik, Nathan Cabrera (for SURU), Tado, Tim Tsui, tokidoki, Touma and more. Rather than working on one identical platform, this stellar group will present their wide range of styles and techniques across twelve different vinyl figures. Vinyl Elements, a must-not-miss event, delivers the essential elements to showcase the very best in custom toy art, piece by piece from the first to the last.

Sounds impressive, huh? With that, I really need to finish up my piece. I'm customizing a 9" Jamungo BUD- I'll try to get a couple of sneak peaks up soon...

Tofu Robot

So yesterday I went down to Robocon in Chinatown to pick up a Tofu Robot. Created by the good folks at Spicy Brown, this little guy stands about four inches tall and has five points of articulation (I think that's just a fancy way of saying his head, arms and feet move.) Anyway, they usually have this little tofu graphic on the belly, but mine is blank because I'm participating in a Custom Tofu Robot show at Robocon's gallery later this summer.

I Want Your Skull Issue #2

So issue #2 of the zine, "I Want Your Skull" dropped this weekend. Once again yours truly graces the pages of this cool skull art-based zine. Ryan August (the brainchild behind it) did a great job on the first issue, and this one looks to be just as good. It also comes with a lot of extra goodies, and the packaging is top notch. This will probably sell out just as quick as issue #1 did, so jump on this folks.

Genesis

Well, here is my first official blog post. I had a blog account here back in 2003, but I never used it and I believe it was lost in the hostile Google takeover (whenever that was.) Oh well, there really wasn't anything good on it anyway. Hopefully I'll be re-designing reactor-88 soon, and the "news" area over there (which is more like a blog anyway) will start being published here. Sounds like a plan...