ted butler

introduction The first time I came across Urban Vinyl was while searching the online stores in some of my favorite web sites. One particular creation aroused my interest especially. The vinyl versions of the characters within their superbly crafted web site tokyoplastic.com really caught my attention, not only were these creations extremely cool, but it opened my eyes to the concept of transferring my ideas onto a 3D medium. Although the Urban Vinyl genre is over a decade old, the fashion of this medium is really

only in the development stages, with techniques being fine-tuned through practice, designers and vinyl toy makers are laying the foundations of turning Urban Vinyl into a genre all artists can take on.

So where does Urban Vinyl come from, what exactly is it and who are influential people associated with it?

history of the action figure In many respects the appearance of designer toys resembles what we can buy in wee packages at our local toy stores. Although the aesthetics between designer toys and action figures are related in some aspects the concept between the two are very far between. My research extends to the beginning of the where the concept stemmed from, where the action figure began, the fundamentals

behind its creation and how [in some aspects] it laid the way for the designer toy and Urban Vinyl movement.

Way back in the 1950’s theBarbie was created. The Barbie itself was modelled upon the fashionable German sex doll Bild Lilli. Funnily enough the Barbie doll was renown for its fashion and trendy outfits opposed to being without any outfit at all. To this day it remains the highest grossing toy of all time. Not long after a boys doll arrived in the form of a plastic man in uniform. The term ‘doll’ initially didn’t sell theconcept because no boy was every going

to play with a doll, even if it was wielding a rifle. Following careful deliberation the term‘actionfigure’wasbornandalongside, the birth of the popular GI Joe figure which has seen over 400 different variations of essentially the same thing over the past 50 years. The action figure plays a huge part in advertising and merchandising of almost every popular film, television programme and cartoon that exists and has existed in the last 30 years. The paraphernalia role of these products goes against everything that art stands for. But mass production and commercialisation

ofactionfigureshasn’tstoppedsomefigures being swapped for huge wads of cash due to the fact that it’s stillin its unopened box. Somewhere in the late 80’s action figures wentfrom being kids toys to being adult collectables. Somewhat this opened up a market for adult toy and it wasn’ttrulycapitaliseduponuntilthemid90’swhenSpawncomiccreatorTodd Mcfarlane, launched his own toy line based upon characters in his graphic novels.

Todd’stoysnotonlyshowedthat vinyl figures are display items, it

also showed a new movement and proved that whatever could be imagined could be replicated three-dimensionally. From the Spawn characters came other characters ofTodd’screations. Itwas thestartupof processes of figures being created that knew no other cultural life, they hadn’tappearinginavideogame,comic,animationormovietheyweren’tfiguresthathadn’tappearedontelevision,.Thedesigner toy had arrived. These were 100% original. The immense attention to detail and quality of each figure is a trademarkofTodd’swork,andwhetherhisworkappealstoyouornotyoucan’thelp but admire that.

Todd’s Toys launched it first lineof figures in 1995, and by 1997 a man by the name of Michael Lau emerged with his own line of self made and inspired toys. Regarded as the forefather of Designer Toys, he was employed by a music group called Anidote to create the cover for an upcoming album. Instead of a 2D design he created an original figure and photographed it. This led to the first official urban vinyl line: The Gardeners. Lau’s figures weredressed up in contemporary outfits depicting hip hop and street scene attire, which undoubtedly lead to the toyspopularity.InitiallyLau’sfigureswere made from GI Joe figures that he had dismembered, recast their heads and hands and remade. The figures were so influential the tremor of the concept shook the Vinyl revolution awakeandit’sbeenprogressingmoreand more with each artists input.

TheDesigner toy doesn’t just referto toys made from vinyl. As the genre has progressed the mediums have too. Plush toys are common now, its kind of weird to think that you can cuddle art. Wood and metal are also used. In fact designer toys can be constructed using any material an artists draws inspiration from.

The ‘circus punk’ toy evolved fromthe century old carnival game where kids have to throw a ball and knock down wooden pins to win a prize. The toy itself is based on the pin and has become a template for artists to decorate.

so what is urban vinyl? The greatest difference between action Figures and designer toys is that Urban Vinyl is created with art sensibilities in mind. The fact that the designer toy actually comes from the creators mind directly, instead of through money making marketing paraphernalia and merchandising motives, the toy was from a realm of its own, it has nopast,justathedawnofthewholegenres future. The beauty of designer toys is that anybody can do it, and if a well known artists brings out their own line of designer toys, they’recollectable without being hugely expensive, meaning that anybody can own a piece of art. The initiative behindthegenreisn’ttooverpopulatethe market with over-priced pieces of plastic. The designer toy is art in its purest and simple form. The toy is either used like a canvas to portray an artists unique style or it is a character based on a concept within the deep murky cavity that is an artists mind.

Jeremyville has been a strong figure in the Urban Vinyl scene, his interpretation of the genre is that:“oneneedstobehighlyinformedasto who Nathan Jurevicius, Rolitoboy, Bill McCullen, Fafi, Groovisions, Tao, MCA, Daren Gan or Tristan Eaton are, and this is where it comes very close to the realm of the traditional fine art market, in that reputation, bankability, fan base & status of the artist in question is paramount. A 3d plastic rabbit from a toy chain, designed by ananonymousstaffartistofamajortoy company, is a world away from a 500 unit run of a Kaws Bunny, which is his vision of a rabbit. True they both are 3D representations of bunnies, but one is a product made in he millions, and the other is a art multiple, akin to say a limited edition screen print by a

respective artist” (Jeremyville Sessions,2007)

In order to appreciate urban vinyl youneed to enjoy it forwhat it is, andwhatitrepresents.It’sthedesigner/artistwho plays the biggest role in creating the character of the toy. And in turn its what’sportrayedonaMunnyDunnyorBe@rbrick is a direct representation of the character and style of the artist who makes it.

Releasing pieces in low numbers keeps the appeal and excitement in collecting. Its turned art into this new aspect of

‘collectable art’ in the same fashion Idid collecting trading cards in my youth. Trying to collect whole sets of figures or a particular artists line of toys and waiting patiently for another range to be brought out next year.

techniques Large corporations at great expense created the technologies used to create toys and small run toy manufacturers are appropriating that technology to create art.What looks good on paper might not work in 3D, generally smooth and flowing shapes are easier not only in construction but also in painting, drawing or printing onto. Vinyl or PVC is used due to its versatility and durability, its easy to color and easily texturised.

FIRST STEP:Creation of a ‘turn-around’. A detailedtechnical illustration of the product featuring front, back and side views of the figure

Some use a computer based 3D render in Maya or another 3D modelling program based from the sketches to ‘fine tune’the character.

SECOND STEP:A clay mould is made, called an Armature. An Aluminium backbone is made and clay is sculpted around this. Then by using a series of tools the miniature sculpture can be added to, shaved off, curved and smoothed until both the artist and sculpture decide upon a final shape.

FINAL STEP: In a process dubbed the ‘lost waxprocess’asiliconmouldisthenmadefrom the clay sculpt which is then used toproduceawaxcastor ‘waxpattern’. This wax positive is thenelectroplated and the wax melted out of its centre creating a metal positive that is then itself cast into a series of moulds suitable for production.

The following is a exert from IDN Magazine volume 13 #6. It explains in depth the processes involves with making vinyl toys.

ROTOCASTINGEssentiallyametalmould‘negative’ofthe figure is partially filled with melted plastic then spun at high velocity. The centrifugal forces spreads the plastic throughout the mould cavity, creating a hollow ‘positive’, which is pulledfrom the mould allowed to cool, decorated and packaged into the vinyl toy. A relatively affordable process, self financed independent artists and producers adopted Rotocasting early on, and its fat bodied hollow style has become synonymous with the aesthetic of art toys.

INJECTION MOULDING Any figures with intricate details utilisesan‘injectionmoulding’processinstead of rotocasting. Rather than spinning a small amount of plastic onto the finished piece, injectionmoulds are filled with molten plastic. Injection moulds allow for a moresignificant level of detail and plastic hardness, but requires a more durable steel mould to withstand the inevitable high production temperatures.Instead of utilising the lost wax process a hard plastic positive is created and subsequently transformed into a negative steel mould suitable for injection moulding. The mouldis then loaded into an injectionmoulding machine, pressed closed and filled with enough molten plastic to entirely fill the cavity. Once removed and cooled, the resulting figure is polished, decorated and packaged (IDNMagazinevolume13#6)

Other methods are common practice too. Constructing characters straight out of polymer clay and 3D printing is becoming more and more affordable and could be the future for toy production. A 3D printer works by constructing an object created with3D software. It deposits a layer of fine powder which then is mixed with

a water-based adhesive, layer by layer it eventually forms the appearance of the picture on the screen.

Following the moulding process the resulting cast needs to be decorated. Crayons, colored pens and paint are all good mediums that have been tried and are usually used by artists on their piece. Depending on skill level this can either be easy or turn into calamity following one misdirected paint stroke so it pays to practice before hand.

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qee bearTheQee’sstandardsizeis2”but8”and 16” figures are also produced.Qee’s vary in their design, usuallywith the same basic body shape, but with head sculpts depicting a bear, cat, dog, monkey and a rabbit. Variations of the Qee are the TOYER with a head that resembles a cartoon skull, the knuckle bear [Touma] which resembles a graffiti style caricature of an anthropomorphized bear and the Qee egg, a birds egg with arms and legs.

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dunnyDunny’s are considered the westerncounterpart of the Qee. Dunny’sare a series of figures that resemble anthropomorphized rabbits in a cartoon style (a design originally illustrated bygraffiti, stencil & comic artists) 3” or8” characters are standard but showpiecesupto36”areoftendisplayedincontemporary art galleries. Munny is a variation of this character, same body but with the head of a monkey. Both styles have unpainted versions, offered as do-it-yourself pieces Designer Toys - wikipedia.com

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artistsCurrently there are thousands of designers on the vinyl bandwagon. Its great because of the variety of the genre andtherateit’sgrowing.“Anexpandingmarket”, according to Hong Kong toydesigner Eric So, “has created moreopportunities for new comers to joinin”Thebeautyofapieceisreallyintheeyes of the collector, and there are some really cool concepts coming out. Seeing a 3D figure of an artist character brings a whole new intimacy between art, designer and fan. The following artists incorporate their style and character onto their toys perfectly, and it shows in their approach to the genre.

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Joe LedbetterAmerica

joeledbetter.com

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JeremyvilleAustralia

jeremyville.com

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James JarvisUKhomepage.mac.com/james.jarvis/index.html

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referencesJeremyville(2007).Sessions.HongKong: System Design Limited.

Jeremyville(Undated).ToyPlatformsCrossovers & New Releases. IdN, 13 No 3, 51-56.

UnknownAuthor(2006,March).Vinyl Fantastical. Computer Arts Projects,Issue82,36-40.

UnknownAuthor(2006,March).Adding Character. Computer Arts Projects,Issue82,14-20.

UnknownAuthor(2006,February).123Klan.ComputerArtsProjects,Issue 81, 22-26.

Budnitz,P(2006).IamPlastic,the designer toy explosion. China: Abrams,animprintofHarryNAbrams Inc.

Berk, S. A., Tumbusch T., & the editors of Tomarts Action FigureDigest(2000).Tomart’sEncyclopaedia of Action Figures (The1001mostpopularcollectiblesof all time). New York NY: Black Dog & Levethal Publishers, Inc.

Jeremyville,MairM.(2005Number2). Serial Achievers. IdN, Volume 12, 41-46.

AuthorUnknown(2007,May30). Action Figure. Retrieved May 18th 2007 from, Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_figure

Jager(2004).DesignerToys,ALook at Urban Vinyl and Where it Came From. Retrieved May 18th, 2007 from, Web site: http://millionaireplayboy.com/toys/urbanvinyl.php

AuthorUnknown(2007,May31,). Designer toys. Retrieved May 18th, 2007 from, Web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_vinyl

Crawford,J.(2006/7No6).BasicVinylation, Soup to Nuts: The creative industrial process behind designer toy making. IdN, Volume 13, 87-92.

image creditsBudnitz,P(2006).IamPlastic,thedesigner toy explosion. China: Abrams, animprintofHarryNAbramsInc.

http://www.qeester.com/sql/gratis.php

Berk, S. A., Tumbusch T., & the editors of Tomarts Action Figure Digest (2000).Tomart’sEncyclopaediaofActionFigures(The1001mostpopular collectibles of all time). New York NY: Black Dog & Levethal Publishers, Inc.

http://www.spawn.com/toys/media.aspx?product_id=2757&type=photo&file=nd_ndprom_photo_01_dp.jpg

http://www.spawn.com/toys/media.aspx?product_id=2524&type=photo&file=series27_spawni086_photo_01_dp.jpg

http://www.spawn.com/toys/media.aspx?product_id=2028&type=photo&file=series17_spawn5_photo_01_dp.jpg

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/15/magazine/15DOLL.html?ex=1250308800&en=676d4fa9c98de4df&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

http://images.google.co.nz/imgres?imgurl=http://static.flickr.om/29/63487588_0bad19d983_o.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.vinylpulse.com/2005/11/honk_sleeping_w.html&h=1024&w=768&sz=163&hl=en&start=1&um=1&tbnid=JtiBgbo6q821rM:&tbnh=150&tbnw=113&prev=/images%3Fq%3Ddunny%2Bhonk%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26sa%3DN

http://www.plasticandplush.com/plasticandplush/2006/02/gradys_bridge_t.html

http://joeledbetter.com/

http://jeremyville.com/home/jeremyville_home.html

http://homepage.mac.com/james.jarvis/index.html

http://scarygirl.com/site.html