#79 Art I Saved This Week

Hello all ❤️

I sincerely thank all of you who shared endorsements for the book I am writing. I know your support will make all the difference in helping publishers understand why a book celebrating living artists is so needed. I will keep you all up to date on any book-related updates. If you would like to contribute an endorsement, it takes 5 minutes or less, and you can do so here.

I just shared a new YouTube video!

It asks: why are we so obsessed with art toys? I dive into the world of designer toys and collectables, exploring their history, culture, and the communities around them.

From early Japanese folk toys to ’90s pioneers, the Lowbrow art movement, consumerism and the Lipstick Effect, through to contemporary artists today.

Every designer toy craze gets unpacked, from KAWS to Superplastic, to Smiskis, Sonny Angel, and the infamous Labubu.

WATCH ON YOUTUBE

This week's curation celebrates some of the incredible emerging artists I discovered who are creating art toys today, often by hand.

Melting incense boi. 3D printed resin. | Copyright © Bluugu

Magic ruby snoozle ducky. | Copyright © Plushie Love

Potty. Resin sculpture, Hand-painted. 18x18x14. | Copyright © Tokyo Tommy

Kali goddess of death. Embroidered bear. | Copyright © Kaelin Jacey

Morty. Fabric, wire. | Copyright © Astrowolki

Ground dragon no.1. Soft vinyl. W42 x L23 x H51cm. | Copyright © Takahiro Komuro. Image courtesy of the artist and Henkyo.

Mortimer. 3D printed. | Copyright © Chiara Basile and Sebastiano De Rosa

Art Prompt

This week's newsletter is focusing on art toys. To embrace this, our prompt to you is to design and or create your own art toy. As you can see from the examples, there are endless mediums and outcomes that let the artists authenticity shine through. Give your character a name, a back story and an aesthetic. What does your art toy look like?

See you next Sunday 👋

Thank you so much!

Imi, Founder of Artists Pages.