The esteemed Jeremy Brautman from ToyCyte.com approached me with an interview for the very well established toy collector site. I’m not a big fan of people devoted to only art toys, or only mainstream toys… but these guys seem to be into all of it. Seems like the gamut of contemporary toys, not just those deemed “art” toys, can be considered our current modern sculpture editions. I’m obviously always ready and amble to ramble about toys, and Jeremy really let me go in the interview. I’m not sure if anyone else is nerdy enough to be as interested in the modern toy phenomena as I am, but I hope I can at least provide some new insights.

Jeremy Brautman’s full-length Leavitt interview: “The Opposite of Writer’s Block”

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Greg Lundgren’s “deathcare boutique” opening has stirred up some attention, and got on both the Seattle P-I front page and Seattle’s NBC local KING-5 evening news broadcast. It’s pretty surreal and hilarious to see the pressed-coat news anchors approach the subject matter on local TV. My figure of Lundgren’s Dad got some great facetime in the story. I guess it’s made my little bit in the project into a freaky poster child, because my picture was also on the front page article.
CLICK HERE TO LINK TO KING-5’s WEB VIDEO OF THIS STORY

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“MEDIA HEROES” TRADING CARDS
As a collaborative project with Reclaim The Media, “Media Heroes” trading cards honor unsung luminaries of independent media history. This first 21-card series features standard trading card sized fully glossy prints on heavy cardstock of original, at-size (2.5″ x 3.5″), ink & marker drawings by Mike Leavitt. These are Leavitt’s first mass-produced trading cards, though the first run is limited to only 2,000 editions. Notable individual cards are previewed below, along with links to view and purchase the full set via ReclaimTheMedia.org.

links to ReclaimtheMedia.org-
DETAILED INFO AND THUMBNAILS OF EACH INDIVIDUAL CARD
$16 “Media Heroes” full set of 21 trading cards purchase form

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Size: 12″ x 7″ x 6″
Materials: hand-carved cedar, acrylic & enamel paint.

I’m hoping to expand the “BaDonkaDuck” into a series of “WMD’s” (White Male Decoys). I’ve been wanting to make hand-carved wood duck decoys for a long time, and once I did my research I found a couple guys doing pretty amazing realistic ones that I didn’t want to compete with. So this was the twisted angle I figured I could take on it. I can see a lot more to come.

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Size: 14″ x 10″
Materials: acrylic, black velvet

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Size: 4″ x 3″ x 1.5″
Materials: acrylic, rock

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Size: 12″ x 4″ x 6″ (each)
Materials: cardboard, oil stain, acrylic paint, glue, staples

I’ll be doing a lot more “Hip Hopjects” along the lines of this classic Adidas Gazelle, Converse Chuck Taylor, and other “clothing”, apparel, and objects. It’s replicated as exactly as possible only in cardboard with acrylic paint, assembled with staples and glue. Even the sole is built solid with 6-plies of only cardboard and glue. I’ll add to the cardboard shoe series that’s already included the original Air Jordan and old school Puma, but also other cardboard clothing items.

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Size: 10″ x 7″ x 5″
Materials: cardboard, acrylic paint, glue, staples, tape

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Size: 8.5″ x 8.5″ x 8.5″
Materials: cardboard, acrylic paint, glue, staples, tape

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Size: 6″ x 2″ x 1.5″
Materials: polymer clay, internal steel wire armatures
2 separate, non-posable figures- Scott Musgrove and his wife Gretchen

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Size: 4″ x 4″ x 6″
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved styrofoam

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Size: 3″ x 3″ x 4″
Materials: polymer clay, internal steel wire armatures
Jo David & Marlow Harris are two of my favorite people ever, so it was a true honor when they wanted me to do this “cake topper”. i’m not quite sure how official a cake topper this is, but nonetheless it’s pretty hilarious that a long-married couple wanted a wedding cake topper of their entire family. it’s a testament to Jo & Marlow’s great sense of humor, and to their always outstanding support of truly unique art.
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Size: 11inches tall
Articulating parts: 24
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved sytrofoam, internal steel armatures, wood and acrylic frame/background
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Size: 6inches tall
Articulating parts: 13
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved sytrofoam, internal steel armatures

A sample piece depicting the father of Greg Lundgren, who is opening a ’boutique deathcare’ gallery in Seattle. My action figures will be one of several means with which to memorialize loved ones lost via Lundgren’s enterprise. Lundgren has made exquisite innovations to the art of tombstones. The new ‘deathcare’ gallery will bring in other work by several of Seattle’s absolute best artists, to compliment Lundgren’s own monuments, including paintings, urns, and other objects crafted by Charles Krafft, Roy McMakin, and Jesse Edwards.

Lundgren Memorials online

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Size: 7inches tall
Articulating parts: 11
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved sytrofoam, internal steel armatures, wood soap box

One of my best friends Ben Lile has developed a nickname amongst us- Dr. Phil. All he’s gotta do at Halloween is shave the perfectly sculpted male-pattern baldness and throw on a cheap suit to do a knock-dead impersonation of America’s soapbox king. Ben actually has a good enough sense of humor about himself that he’s wholeheartedly embraced the nickname enough to have me do this figure of him: The Dr.Phil/Mr.Lile.
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Size: 7inches tall
Articulating parts: 14
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved sytrofoam, internal steel armature

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Size: 11inches tall
Articulating parts: 12
Materials: polymer clay, internal hand-carved sytrofoam, internal steel armatures

Evo Morales is the President of Bolivia, the first fully indigineous President of the country. With his signature sweaters, the ex-coca farmer has pioneered a stylish, casual fashion for an elected leader. To protest the international ban on high altitude soccer games played above 8,200 ft. elevation (essentially illegitimizing international soccer competition in Bolivia), Evo staged a soccer game exhibition that was played at 19,700 ft. elevation.
more info on Evo here online
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Dot Dot Dash. 275 pages. ©2006 Die Ghestaltin Verlag. Berlin, Germany
Matthias Huebner has compiled a mind-bending plethora of everything art toy, from plush and performance art to urban vinyl and designer limited editions. Plenty of hand-made work toys are nicely respected, including a great spread on The Art Army.
purchase Dot Dot Dash online

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Copro/Nason catalogue. 275 pages. ©2006 Last Gasp. San Francisco, USA
To culminate the 10th anniversary of their establishment, Copro/Nason Gallery published this 275-page book chalked full of beautiful art. The Art Army is featured several times, most notably with the action figures of the gallery’s owners, Greg Escalante (curator of Juxtpoz) and Doug Nason.

purchase the Copro/Nason catalogue online

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Rat Fink’s Revenge. The Custom Monster Collection. 125 pages. ©2006 Tornado Design. Los Angeles, USA.
The catalogue to accompany the traveling show of customized 12-inch fiberglass models depicting Big Daddy Roth’s classic 1950’s anti-Mickey Mouse, The Rat Fink.
purchase available online soon.

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