i am by no means an "idol" but am "american" so i figured this would fit best here. yeah i know this is a "jp" based toy site and the project i am working on is "western" but hey...the section says (Do it here for Americans. KAWS, Mr. Kozik, Pushead, Futura, "art toys") so this is where it will live.
i will be releasing my first vinyl toy in january of 2008. some of the more frequented "western vinyl" news sites will be posting more detailed photos and info soon so keep your eyes peeled. i will also be updating this thread on a somewhat regular basis with more info and photos as we near the release date. for now i will just "tickle your ass" with a feather" and post a picture of the boxfront and backstory on the character. comments and criticism (both positive and negative) are welcome but i ask that you at least say something more than "sucks" or "cool". if you are going to make the effort to post a comment at least make it worth while and valuable to me. thanks.
EDIT: so i may be flooding this thread with useless pics and info but hell...i'm gonna share anyway. here's how the process worked:
SKETCH
i fooled around for a while and came up with a character i liked. i found a vendor and sent the sketch off to them...BOOM...we're off!
SCULPT
after a month or so (i can't actually remember) i was sent pics of the sculpt to approve so they could move forward with the mold. i also learned about how certain compromises need to be made to tolerate the functionality of the piece and producing it vs. my "artistic vision". only a couple changes were made to the sculpt and then they went to wax. i also started fooling around with the character at this point in illustrator to get what i wanted the paint to look like. there are a lot of bad designs i don't want to show...
STORY
it was at this time i also started writing the backstory on this guy. i had the character sketched out but he needed purpose. my daughter came up with the name and i was off...
Not so long ago, in a place that is closer to most of us than we would like
to believe, there lived a small demon named Keek. Keek spent most of his
days performing repetitive and menial tasks in the bowels of the earth along
with the other demons his age in hopes of one day becoming a true Devil.
When that day finally came, Keek was summoned to meet Lucifer himself. “The
time has come for you to grow into a true entity of evil,” Lucifer said, and
with a quick prod of his pitchfork, Keek was overcome by a sense of
invincibility and confidence. “You will be sent to walk the earth and
create chaos and fear amongst all men.” As the last word left Lucifer’s
lips, Keek was suddenly plunged into darkness. He regained his senses to
find himself standing upon the vast landscapes of the surface world.
It took only a single day of observation to cast Keek into a deep
depression. It quickly became clear that Man himself had already created
far more chaos, fear and destruction than Keek could ever have caused on his
own. Depressed and mortified by what he saw, knowing that his task had been
taken from him before it began, Keek walked aimlessly into the darkening
world, doomed to forever be…the saddest devil.
WAX SCULPT
all of my edits to the clay were done and then they made a wax mold of the sculpt that they would in turn use to make the master mold for casting from. the wax is actually lost in this process.
BOX/LOGO DESIGN
at this point in time i received a dieline of the box from the vendor so design on the packaging/logo started while i continued to work on the paint/colorway options. insert more bad designs i don't want to show here...
our journey ends here for now. i actually am further along in the process but i want to make some more jpegs to post along with the info/text. check back later.
UPDATE 02/01/08
YEAH! we got news that the final pieces have been boxed and will begin their long journey to me via a "slow boat from china" this month (feb). big things are in the works including an official "micro run" of a custom painted version of 20 pieces or so by one of the vinyl scenes top customizers in his own signature colorway and a "custom saddest devil show" up in massachusetts with the possibility of the final pieces being sold online so everyone has a shot at them. the final update and pictures of this badboy boxed up will hit within a month or so via the online news sites first and then here. keep checking back in and until next time...BOOM!
GREY COLORWAY
PINK COLORWAY
hits later in 2008
RAW COLORWAY
super limited, hits later in 2008
UPDATE 03/06/08
update time...BOOM! well, i struck a deal with dke toys and they will be distributing the saddest devil to any and all shops that will take 'em (www.dketoys.com). i will also be selling them myself and as a bonus will include an exclusive print with every order as a thank you for buying direct from the artist. i am working on getting a functioning webstore developed for launch so things should run smooth for both local and international orders direct from me.
i will also be offering 10 "blood splattered" handpaints for sale direct from me as an homage to my favorite toy company, secret base. yeah the "blood splattered" thing is getting a bit played out but to my knowledge, secret base was the very first "designer vinyl" company to offer the blood splattered figure and this is my way to tip my hat to a major personal favorite.
i also have received samples of all 3 colorways and will be posting a nice beauty shot soon. the pink colorway will hit retailers this august/september. i am trying to work out the details to have just a handful for sale at comic con as a "first available" so attendees will get a chance to grab one a month or so early.
lastly i'd like to thank my friend scott (¡DEECO!) for hooking me up with a super rad promo video. he did 2 different audio tracks to it for me to choose from and honestly i couldn't decide. they are both on youtube and one is embedded right here in this thread. check 'em out. details on a couple more big things are in the works so check back in for more info on the customs show, the limited release by a custom superstar (name to be announced soon) and more.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8AnIg2ktfY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8AnIg2k ... re=related
UPDATE 04/04/08
DKE Toys is set to send out solicitations to shops globally the week of April 14th for the Grey colorway of THE SADDEST DEVIL @ a SRP of US$60. Go bug your favorite retailers for 'em...
"Keek", The Saddest Devil stands 6.5"inches tall and is limited to 250-pcs, and will also be available @ the newly designed webstore @ devilsheadquarters.com - which should also be live the week of April 14th. You can show support for the artist and buy direct and as a special "thank you" ALL ORDERS made direct from devils head will get a FREE 5 X 7 print (below) and 4 pin set (all pins shown below as well). GET PSYCHED...BOOM!
