• Topics▼
  Books Design / Art Events Misc. Movies Music Sunday Roundup Toyz TV Shows Video games Works / Projects

• Archive▼
  February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007

• Websites▼
  Max Dana, Official Site The Sama Gazette The World of Sama da-eYe

• Blog Anniversary Posts▼
  2010: Third anniversary 2009: 2nd time's a charm 2008: First anniversary 2007: Here we go!

The first time I mentioned Mist on this blog was almost 2 years ago in the post: Yes, I’m a vinyl fetishist… vinyl toys actually. I was introducing those of you who didn’t know yet about vinyl toys, to the artists I appreciate the most. I later dedicated a post to Fafi and her Fafinettes (Irina’s still missing, by the way…), Mars-1 + Seen + Delta Inc., TimTsui + Alice Chan, Skwak’s Maniac and Koogai and to the Original Fake Kaws Cat Teeth Bank. Last summer I mentioned Mist’s Goldorus figure in: My Moleskine, Cary Grant, some Asti Spumante and a Goldorus, so today’s post is all about French graff artist Mist “The Infamous”and his amazing vinyl creations. As you may already know, I am not into the collector thing, buying everything an artist creates. But I must admit some artists have the power to make me buy their work,…⇒ READ MORE

A year ago, in my post: Yes, I’m a vinyl fetishist… vinyl toys actually, I briefly mentioned Skwak and his Maniac Figure produced last year by MINDstyle; I think it is time to talk about it again. Skwak is one of the many great french artists like Fafi and her Fafinettes, Rolito, KOA, Miss Van, 123Klan, Run, Superdeux, Tilt or Mist (his Goldorus is gorgeous!), and his unique graphic universe has a meaning: ‘too much’. Everything is exaggerated in Skwakworld but that’s how our real world is and I totally agree with that. The World of Sama also depicts a crazy world but in a different way and that (cynical?) vision we share is what definitely made me a fan of his work. Each of his illustration is very detailed and you have to carefully look at it to get the whole story it is telling. The crazy Maniacs and…⇒ READ MORE

The 1930s were a great time for movies and design, as well as the 1950s and the 1970s. I have several furniture and objects from the Seventies, reminding me when I was a kid (along with Abba, Star Wars, flares pants…). Everything was ‘designed’, from the Maruman table cigarettes lighter (made in Japan) to the ‘Boby’ storage cart by Joe Columbo (made in Italy) in the late 60′s. Colors were fresh, orange, green, red or yellow. If you like this period, then you would probably enjoy this photo I took 2 days ago. This is the vintage desk I’m often working on, listening to Donna Summer or Leonard Cohen. There is an orange phone (I don’t use it), an orange alarm-clock (displaying the right time only once a day), an orange apple shaped ice-cube storage and some orange vinyl toys (Stereotype 04: Be My Guest, two red Rolito birds). And…⇒ READ MORE

Urban vinyl toys, vinyl figures, designer toys; all these terms are used to describe toys and other collectibles (plastic or vinyl) you might have already seen somewhere. When I published my first Sama drawings on the Internet, back in 1999, I was working on a 3D model of the Sama Water Tank, made with clay. The result was approximate but my Sama went to life in real 3D. I had a Mazinger Z figure on my desk, an Astro Boy on a shelf aside this Sama kind-of-thing; that was before I heard of Michael Lau. The Gardeners, his first original action figures created in the late nineties, were the start of a whole new industry, the designer toys industry was born. It would be too long to talk about every artist, designer and figure but I can tell you is that I really like vinyl toys. I’m not making a…⇒ READ MORE