Catching up - MECHAVIRUS PICS!

Finally!  Here are pics from the recent Mechavirus Exhibition here at RAMPAGE STUDIOS in Tokyo!  Todd did a SICK job on all of the work for this show, and it was seriously an honor to have it all in the gallery space.  Most of the items have since sold, but a few are still available either in-store (Tokyo address to the right --> )or in the RAMPAGE on-line shop:

http://rampagetoysandart.bigcartel.com

Here's pics from the show!









RAMPAGE AMMONAITO gouache customs.


OG RAMPAGE Gouache on paper.  The UU is in peril!




RAMPAGE AMMONAITO MICRO RUN!










Up next - A TON of online drops, followed by SUPERFESTIVAL 62 - which I am VERY excited about! Lots of collabs in the works - and I will be hosting some of the best Keshi around thanks to the likes of TRU:TEK, Eric Nilla and Nama Niku!

This Friday is the release of a fun Blind Bag collab with Japanese sofubi maker Uky Daydreamer.  These will be in the online shop on Friday at 11AM Japan time. Pics soon!

RAMPAGE STUDIOS update

Hey Folks!

It's been a wild and crazy couple of weeks - leading up to THIS FRIDAY'S opening here at RAMPAGE STUDIOS!

It's about time I get all of the info straight for this thing.  Here is it:

WHERE:  RAMPAGE STUDIOS (171-0032, 3-14-9 Zoshigaya, Toshima-ku Tokyo-to, JAPAN)

WHEN:  Opening Party is on January 25th (Friday) starting from 7PM.  Store hours (pending travel, show attendance, or other such things) following the opening will be: Mon. closed, Tues. 14:00-19:00, Wed. 12:00-17:00, Thurs. 14:00-19:00, Fri. closed, Sat./Sun. ONLY open for exhibitions or events: 11:00-16:00.  I can also open up at other times if you make an appointment, which can be done via email:  rampage.toys@yahoo.com

WHAT:  Opening Partay and show to feature the following most excellent awesomeness:



More specifically, the contributors for this show have sent over a TON of  great stuff including, but certainly not limited to, the follwing:

-TRU:TEK and the Disarticulators Debut of Kesh-e-Face, The Tiny Terrors from the deep and Higekami (Master of Beard Fu). 
-TR:TEK has provided the DEBUT release of his H.U.S.T.L.E. artist series! 



-Nama Niku reveals his NNWA figure - Awesome!
-Hellopike sent over a ton of his Nikuthulu MUSCLE mash-up - in lots of different colors
-Eric Nilla has gone all out with loads of MUSCLES of the Universe figures, and his original Sitting Adam and SD Rick figures.
-Peter Kato provided a nice pile of resin that has been given some signature RAMPAGE TOYS paint applications ;-)
-Art Junkie delivered a box full of his handpainted "Shitman' resin figures, as well has some 'DX' shitman resins and an exclusive T-shirt release
-The RAMPAGE STUDIOS Gachapon Machine will be up and running - stocked with rubber figures from RAMPAGE TOYS and Nama Nikku.



AND THEN - VINYL:  On top of the great stuff that will be on display (and for sale) for the opening show, there will also be a whole bundle of exclusive sofubi releasing.  The shop (and on-line store) will feature rotating exclusives and RAMPAGE handpainted sofubi from some of the best folks out there!  Stock at the opening (or in the weeks/months to follow) will feature the following makers:

-Kikkake
-Splurrt
-Refreshment
-Pop Soda
-Velocitron
-Angel Abby (RAMPAGE STUDIOS is to become one of Angel Abby's Tokyo Distribution Stores!)
-Plaseebo
-Uamou
-Blobpus
-Frenzy
-Monster Worship
-Hints and Spices

The list is growing, but for now the above listed makers have either already mailed me stuff, or their stuff will be in the shop at the time of the opening on the 25th. 

LAST, BUT NOT LEAST: New Dinosaurs and New Ugly Unicorns are on the way!  Things have been a bit nutty, so releases have been slow in the new year - but the regular release schedule will pick up again soon!  Lots of great collaborations are on their way as well, so get psyched!  Also, sculpts are started for some new sofubi!  YAY!

More soon - including the (eventual) birth of www.rampagetoys.com and such :-P

RAMPAGE STUDIOS TOKYO - coming soon!

ANNOUNCEMENT!

RAMPAGE is getting a STOREFRONT - in TOKYO!

RAMPAGE STUDIOS will open on January 25th - right here in central Tokyo - with an opening show/party featuring work from some of the best resin and rubber mini-figure makers around!  More info will be up in a following post, but here's the BEE's KNEES event flyer (By the MAN, Trutek) to get the excitement going!



I know I'm MEGA EXCITED! How about you guys? :-)

More soon!

A Trip to Gotto-san’s

Over the two or so weeks that I spent in and around Tokyo, for the duration of my exhibition at Studio Uamou, I was fortunate to meet a lot of really great people! Some of them were new faces, and many were people who I’ve come to enjoy the company of every time I head down there. Ayako Takagi (Ms. Uamou herself) invited loads of toy people (fans, artists, the whole gang) to come say hi at the show, and she also organized for me to meet Mori-san (head of Real Head), and for Mori to take me to see one of the Sofubi World’s legends – paint master Gotto-san!



On April 4th, I jumped on my bike and headed across Tokyo to meet Mori at Nippori station. We got on a train, and were soon in the Northeastern ‘suburbs’ of Tokyo; continuing on foot towards Gotto-san’s studio. Mori tends to refer to Gotto-san’s studio as his ‘paint factory,’ but upon first site I doubt many people would think of the word ‘factory.’ It’s more of a hut really – marginally held together, and probably a bit sketchy to be inside of during an earthquake. The studio is attached to Gotto-sans home by a portal of sorts – which Mori mentioned had been constructed by Gotto-san out of ‘whatever he could find around.’ Anyway, I’m not sure how long Gotto-san has had the same workspace, but he has been painting Sofubi for over 60 years. 60 years. That means that Gotto-san might have been responsible for some of the pricey vintage toys over which so many of us salivate (and so few of us consider within our budget).

Upon opening the door to the studio, one enters a small Genkan (traditional Japanese style entry way where all are expected to remove their shoes), a the eyes are drawn to couple really big fish tanks, lots of boxes and, of course, toys. But before I even noticed those things with my eyes, my nose was very aware of the strong scent of Vcolor – the magical liquid of wonder (i.e. paint) that adheres to Sofubi with a vengeance and holds on despite your best attempts to scratch it off! Shoes removed and moving into the space, you start to feel like you’re in some sort of café. There’s a bar, behind which Gotto-san sits and paints, and in front of which is a small ‘table for two’ where Mori is often sitting - putting in requests for colors and technique that Gotto should use while painting. Mori is often at Gotto-san’s place, working on Real Head’s next releases while surrounded by boxes of awesome awesome toys. As a toy maker, collector and all-around enthusiast, I was unable to stop smiling as I sat surrounded by all that great stuff. And the paints! I have a fair number of paints in my own studio, but Gotto-san has me beat one hundred times over. Amazing.



Of course the biggest highlight of my visit to Gotto-san’s was having him (along with, in part, Mori and myself) paint a few of my own Sofubi. While I ate lunch, Mori took the lead and directed Gotto-san as he painted one Manotaur and one Ugly Unicorn. Once I finished my sandwich, it was my turn to (try to) tell Gotto-san how to paint two more figures. No need to go into much detail about that process because I’ve made a video that covers it (albeit a bit crudely), and it’s likely that you just came here to link to the video anyway, so here it is - Hope you enjoy taking this virtual trip to Gotto-san’s paint studio!

Ah, yes - the toys Gotto-san painted. Here are some pics! I did the eyes (upon request from Mori that I have a hand in the process) on all but the gold Manotaur (the eyes of which were hand painted by Mori). The Unicorns' eyes were done entirely by hand, whereas the 'Galactic Disco Manotaur's' eyes I did with my brush once I got him home. Enjoy!

Studio Uamou Wrap Up!

Long time no blog!

The show at Studio Uamou was, well - MEGA! That about covers it! The Studio Uamou customers seemd pretty psyched on the customs I brought to show, and it was a great chance to personally meet many of Tokyo's (and some of Sendai's) most awesome toy people! Thanks to everyone who came out to check out the show, and especially to those folks who saw fit to bring a little something home from the show ;-)

Of course - a HUGE HUGE HUGE Thank You to Ayako Takagi and AiAi, who are the fairy dust that cause the magic at Studio Uamou! If you are EVER in Tokyo, you NEED to go there! - here, that is:

〒110-0005
東京都台東区上野5-9 2k540 AKI-OKA ARTISAN N-5

Uamou's Site is here. SUPER CUTE site ^_^

And, photos! Here are a bundle from the end of the show:

And here's a WHOLE BUNDLE of blank Uamous that came home with me! Lots of plans for further collaboration with Ayako, so join the mailing list if you want the low-down on it all!

If you are interested in anything fro the show, it might be possible to grab a thing or two. There are just a few things in my shop now (http://rampagetoysandart.bigcartel.com), and Uamou is accepting pre-orders for a couple figures for a little while ;) You can reach Uamou here: info@uamou.com

Up next is a post about famous sofubi painter Gotto-san! I have a video and lots of fun info to share ^_^ Soon!

MARCH MEGA UPDATE #2

STUDIO UAMOU!!!

SO, next week will be the opening of my first solo show (or, as the Japanese word translates, "One man show") in JAPAN! I'll be carting 80+ sofubi and 100+ other items down to Studio Uamou in Tokyo's Akihabara!

I couldn't be more excited! It's been really hard keeping the stuff I'm doing under wraps, but it's time to start sharing some teasers - here you go!







15 Ugly Unicorns (2 micro runs and 5 customs), 60-ish Uamous (icluding a run of 30 skeletal x-rays and a TON of customs), paintings, buttons, screen prints - YAY!

If you can make it - be there! If not - I'll get info up about on-line sales as soon as I know anything about that :-/

MEGA UPDATE #1

THE MANOTAUR!!!! YEAH!!!!

Got a batch of these guys, and the rest of the blanks are on their way to Justin Hillgrove in Seattle! I'm painting a couple today!

HUGE! He towers over the Ugly Unicorn - and his arms are SUPER poseable - FUN!



Looking forward to working on runs of this guy - they are going to kick ass!

YOu can grab a white or black figure on Justin's Site - NOW! Here's a link

MANOTAUR update

Here it is! A little more info on the MANOTAUR from Imps and Monster and RAMPAGE TOYS. Actual - this is quite a bit of info, and SUUUUPER exciting! Can't wait for March - for sooooo man reasons (just check out the Events list to the right!). Anyway - MAN-O-TAAAAAAAUUUURRRRR!!!!! Here's the Wax.



This is 8 inches of full-sized sofubi monster action! He's at the factory having a little run-in with some copper electroplating machinery :-P

Release is slated for Emerald City Comic-Con - March 29th in Seattle - we thinks... Fingers crossed for smooth sailing, and maybe even a few RAMPAGE handpaints to accompany the initial release of blanks.

Waniphants!

"What's a Whaniphant?" you say? Well - only a most-excellent sofubi toy! Only the kick-ass brain child of Shane Haddy (Hints and Spices) from Australia!

:-P

Anyway, this Friday (Friday Evening EST) will see the release of a little micro-run Waniphant collab. RAMPAGE x Hints and Spices on glitter vinyl! I painted five of these crazy creatures with a bundle of clear sprays and a hint of brush work here and there. These serve as a little 'teaser' for something Shane and I have in the works, which will be revealed just a little before the next Superfestival near the end of April.

Here's pics of this Friday's new-ness!





Of course, don't forget about the RAINBOW GID Ugly Unicorns and Blank GID Ugly Unicorns that are up for pre-order until this Friday! Don't miss out on your only chance to grab a blank GID Unicorn (I hate to see people cry,... ya know?).

Second Post on Double Post Day!

This is breaking news stuff, so I think it deserves its own post :-P

NEW TOYS are coming this Friday in zee shoppe!!! I'll be finally be releasing a new run of Uncorns for web consumption, and then I also have a nice little micro-run collab that will join the party.

First, the Unicorns: "Dark Side of the Ugly" Rainbow GID!





This painted version will be released this Friday on a pre-order basis - along with blank GID unicorns. The painteds are limited to 1 per person and the run is limited to a max of 20 painted figures. Blanks are wide open, and everyone is welcome to order as many as they like :-) Hopefully this will result in a number of people grabbing one (or more) to paint! Let's see those handpaints!

Painted and blanks will go up for sale Friday night (here in Japan) - so they should be there in the shop when people are getting up on Friday morning in the States. The pre-order stays up for one week - until 2/10.

Second up (but no less fun!) - a little collaboration with my friend Aya from Refreshment Toys! When I was in Osaka a few weeks ago, Aya gave me 10 of he mini-cuppy figures. I painted them, sent half to her, and half (5) will be in the shop this friday

A whole BUNDLE of spray, stencil and gouache on these oh-so-cute little cupcake dudes!



That'll do for now! Next week: Waniphants!!!

KIDS! CADAVERS! WAAAAHH!!!

OK, double post day - starting with the actual full reveal of the Cadaver kids that were released and promptly snatced up) last Friday! Thanks to all those who tried - I think it's now safe to say: "you might be trying again later this spring" ;-)

Anyway - "Guardian Daemon Kids"



And the custom "Barcode Kid" (Gouache handpaint)



Splurrt is now working on his own run of Ugly Unicorns - which I'm SUPER PSYCHED about! They should be ready to go soon, and I'll get that posted here when they are.

This Week's Stuff

GOOD EVENING! Well,...it's evening for me - who knows where you are!

This week sees the release of two most excellent runs of toys - both of which are collaborations that I've been excited about for some time!

1) RAMPAGE x Blurble "Pretty Ugly Unicorns"! Mike (Blurble) painted up a sweet little run of Ugly Unicorns last week. He's releaseing them in his on-line shop this Thursday at 12 noon PST. They were painted using all sorts of color change and metallic paints from Monster Kolor! I, personally cann't wait to get my hands on one.



Here are pics on Blurble's Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kidtv/

And Blurble's BigCartel: http://toxickaiju.bigcartel.com/


2) RAMPAGE x Splurrt "Guardian Daemon Cadaver Kids"!!! SOOO Psyched for this batch of vinyl! I'm still working on these dudes, but here's the info:

What: Run of 10 Cadaver Kids - painted with a brain-melting araay of sprays and brush-work. I'll have these done by Wednesday (Japan Time).

When: Releasing in my BigCartel on Friday morning (Japan time - which will be night time on Thursday in the states) Teaser!



Next week will see yet another really exciting release! Stay Tuned!

Cute Attack!

Hey there all you super keen people ;-)

Wow! So much going on now - I do't know where to start. How about with this Friday's release in zee shoppe!

For Superfestival I painted up a run of Kikkake's cute little Bears (Kuma-chan). They all departed for new homes at the event! However, at Sufes I also recieved more bears and more elephants from Kikkake, and I set to work on them over the past week. So, this Friday will see a nice sized drop of painted and blank Zou-chan (elephants) and Kuma-chan (bears)!

Here's what will be up in the shop this Friday:

"Starburst Clan Zou-chan" - run of 10 - lots of sprays and details on turquoise vinyl

"Strawberry Ears Kuma-chan" - made to order. I only have 10 bears, so I'm offering the choice of one painted OR one blank figure

Here's what the blank little guys look like ^_^

These will all appear sometime in the morning hours (US time) this Friday (1/20/2012). I have yet ANOTHER release panned for next week, and the week after that! Teasers coming soon ;)

Post-Sufes 58

To all who followed on twitter and instagram - and especially to all who attended Superfestival 58 - THANK YOU! The event was a great success for RAMPAGE TOYS, and I believe it was one of the most well attended and altogether successful SF's in a while! Indy Sofubi IS NOT DEAD, and people in Japan seem to be gaining more and more interest in the creations of Japanese and non-Japanese Indy sofubi makers alike. This show made me really excited for 2012 - I'm already looking forward to the next Sufes in April!

below are a few shots of the RAMPAGE TOYS table, and some other stuff. There are bundles of pictures on my Flickr as well as a VERY VERY in depth report of the event over on my Buddy Andy's Blog (Kaiju Korner). Andy did such a thorough job of covering the event - it would be silly for me to attempt to do the same! Here are some of my pics:

"Zee Rampage Booss"
Ilanena-san with some vintage Starwars awesomeness (in front of his table)
Some Card-Monster and Ugly Unicorn Comradery

Ilanena Custom UU's! A taste of the (maybe near, maybe distant) future!

All of the remaining items from the show (Ugly Unicorns, Collab stuff, etc.), will be in the shop tomorrow, January 11th - early morning time in America - late night time in Japan ;-)

Here's the shop:

http://rampagetoysandart.bigcartel.com

Next up - more Kikkake Elephants and Bears, and then some REALLY exciting stuff! Who likes things that glow in the dark - I DO!