RCGNTN: make local your focal

For the first time in Singapore, Red Bull will be hosting it’s popular international pop art competition here on our sunny island. We have come to associate Red Bull with vibrancy and creativity and this competition proves that the brand strives for nothing less.

Red Bull Art of Can was officially launched on the 1st of March, and will be concluding with an exhibition for 10 days at the new *SCAPE from 2nd to 11th of July and finally a judging. The only rule participants have to abide to is to use Red Bull’s trademark cans as part of their artwork, which deserves more thumbs up from us for their recycling efforts.

The great thing about Red Bull Art of Can competition is that anyone can take part and the sky’s the limit. I love how they don’t put a cap on anyone’s creativity because creativity is wild and unpredictable. And the prizes are nothing less than the best, I personally feel that getting even the 3rd prize would make me a very happy winner; the prizes are a trip for 2 to Berlin, weekend trip for 2 to Melbourne and a Canon DSLR camera for 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Red Bull sure knows how to make people happy.

It’s a win-win situation for everyone because even the public (for the self-proclaimed uncreative people) can get in on the fun by voting on their website! A lucky voter will win a Canon digital camera.

SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! Registration is now open online at www.redbullartofcan.sg from now to 15 May!

Bic Buddy’s having a custom show in New York and Los Angeles in March/April 2010 showcasing nothing but the best customisers from around the globe, so it’s no surprise that our man Phu is going to represent. Employing his distinct ‘phuturistic’ style on the Bic Buddy, Phu transforms the toy into an Euro hover cruiser complete with a 3″ rebel pilot. And as you already know, his work is not complete without the use of recycled materials, utilizing cardboard, found objects, a Gashapon acrylic teardrop, plastic pellets and wire. The Euro stands at 6″ tall and is definitely going to take out the invaders.

Breaking out of his norm with this piece, toy customiser Dory stretches beyond customising toys for the NAC’s Singapore NOISE Festival 2010.  Known for his crazy detailing, the customiser transforms a simple pair of canvas sneakers into a something that runs reminescent with those diver suits worn in WWII; particularly emphasized on with the use of epoxy clay, acrylic paints as well as the addition of nuts and bolts. Open till the 10th of March at the 3rd floor of Raffles City Shopping Centre, the sneakers will be on display along with his past work at the NOISE Festival so make it a point to check out the crazy detailing we keep telling you about as well as work from other young talents.

Sup will be heading down to the very popular Buffet Trade Show in Melbourne, being the only local streetwear label chosen to represent Singapore among other international street labels such as Japan’s Rocksmith, Sweden’s WESC as well as the very respected Jeff Staple. Props to Jacky!

And when a Singaporean is sent to rep the country, nothing but the best will do. Enter one of Singapore’s finest toy customizers Phu together with what he does best, the result is an excellent masterpiece of the Sup logo that’s locally done and will be exhibited for all to see at the trade show. REPRESENT!

Check out more close-up as well as process images after this, as well as check out Phu on his website as well as on RCGNTN’s guestblogs!

Handmade with the elements of fashion, art and design in mind, CREAMOUS released their collection titled “The Littles Vol2” into the new year- a trio of handmade figurines with tiny little messenger bags and a miniature camera. Following “The Littles Vol1″ which was released last year which had each character carry a backpack, these little guys (in colourways different from the past year) see much effort put in by the creator, especially so with the miniature bags. Check out more pictures of “The Littles Vol2″ below.

Remember Phu’s P-77’s? The local toy customizer will be bringing back his futuristic customs in a different shade, this time in yellow and purple. Produced by MyTummyToys, the resin toy stands 8″ tall with 6 points of articulation. Though not released as yet, interested parties can be sure to get their hands on one (or a few) by emailing the man himself. And from the looks of it, the toys are real dope, even a fat kid will trade his cake for it.

Daniel Yu recently submitted his piece to the SMU Arts Festival “Content: Navigating a Point” entitled “Incognito” and it definitely does not fall below standards. Using a Playmobil base with epoxy sculpt, acrylic paints and digital prints, each head sculpt is just under an inch tall so one can imagine how much work goes into these detailed pieces. Simply amazing.

Toy enthusiasts have another reason to get inspired to pick up customizing after seeing pieces like these from local toy customizer Daniel Yu (aka Dory). Taking inspiration from all things kitschy, weird and intriguing, Dory’s pieces range from zombies (pictured above), gasmasks, lambs with giant bombs (aptly named (b)lamb), tons of quirky characters to his profilic piece, the Playmo de Plumes stock playmobil figures.

What’s unique about Daniel’s custom toys? The fact that they are so sick! Daniel’s quirky yet fresh characters are birthed from a healthy imagination, which never fail to grab the attention of many a toy enthusiast. Plus, every piece possesses intense detailing down to every crease and stitch, not to mention the painstaking paintjob that make the characters pop. Don’t miss out on this talent.

Call it a collectible, an LP, or both; the much anticipated DJ Tommy Robot presented by SMUDGEstore, CLOT Media Division and DJ Tommy has just been launched in full strength with only 300 produced!

SMUDGEstore is featuring the very limited SMG / JJ Lin’s Black Edition with the full length LP “Vinyl-CD-MP3” by DJ Tommy. What’s special about this toy is that by popping the robot’s head, a thumb drive holding the LP will be revealed. This album rounds up big names like Edison Chen, MC Hotdog, MastaMic, MC Yan, 24 Herbs, Mavis Fan, NYCCA and JJ Lin in a selection of hits that is both representative of DJ Tommy’s style and a reflection of voices of today’s street scene. All you got to do is pop it in your computer and download the tracks!

The SMG / JJ Lin’s Black Edition is exclusive to SMUDGEstore and will be released on Christmas Eve, 24^th December 2009 at SMUDGEstore at a very special pre-launch price that is offered only when you make your pre-order purchase via their online store. Overseas buyers will be glad to know that their toys will be shipped out early so everyone will have their toy on 24^th December! The special pre-launch price is at SGD99.90, so take advantage of it now at SMUDGEstore.

SMUDGEstore is located at 8A Ann Siang Hill (Level 2)