With a slew of hand sculpt and cast resin releases, an original vinyl toy, plus collaborations with the likes of Kikkake, Splurrt, Tenacious Toys, and Hints & Spices, the past 12 months have seen Rampage Toys grow to become one of the indie toy scene’s hottest properties. Founder Jon Malmstedt shows no signs of letting up over the coming months, with a host of shows, limited resin runs, more Ugly Unicorn madness, and the long awaited collaboration with Imps and Monsters’ Justin Hillgrove all coming to fruition soon.
We managed to get some time with the man himself in between a very hectic schedule to find out a bit more about his work, how the Ugly Unicorn came to be, and the future plans for Rampage Toys…
(Franken Ugly custom commission GID Ugly Unicorn, 2012)
What got you involved in the art toy scene, and toys in general? Keshi/M.U.S.C.L.E have featured heavily in your resin releases, were they a big part of your childhood?
I collected He-Man when I was really little… until my mom sold all of them for $1 each at a yard sale… heartbroken… I also had the old buckets of MUSCLE, but I mostly remember throwing them at friends and burying them in the dirt… The ones I still have have mostly been designated for ‘alteration’ (‘kit-bash – or however you like to call that sort of thing). I really like the micro-size!
After that the next big things was Ninja Turtles, and Monsters in My Pocket. I did a couple MIMP kit-bash figures last year, and I’ll have a new one coming out in March! Unfortunately I am not set-up to cast my own resin anymore, but I’m lucky to have a couple good connections in the states for having resin cast. My favorite resin guys are The Godbeast (Marty Hansen), Monstrehero and (my new favorite) Peter Kato. I love the stuff all of those guys are doing!
(Tooty Fruity ACE Luchadors, 2011)
Are there any artists/designers that inspire your work? Anyone that you particularly follow?
My start was in resin toys, but at that time I didn’t even know there was a scene for them, and I was woking in a bubble… When I got into vinyl toys I started off following a lot of what Huck Gee and Dalek were doing. I really liked their clean style and I’d like to think I gleaned a lot of ideas and technique from looking at their stuff a few years back. I have to admit that I haven’t even glanced at either of those guys’ sites for about 2 years though…
At some point I found myself really drawn to the indy resin stuff and Japanese vinyl, and the artists working in those mediums. After that I started doing more of this small resin stuff, and less and less of the western vinyl ‘customs.’ In particular I really enjoy the stuff that Bwana Spoons does. The colors! A few others who I keep a close eye on are Uamou (Ayako Takagi), Splurrt (Joe Merril) and Paul Kaiju.
(‘Barcode Kid’ custom Cadaver Kid from Rampage x Splurrt, 2012)
You’ve been living in Japan for a while now, what made you up-sticks and leave the States, and how has the transition been?
Well, my wife and I wanted to move to Japan, and were fortunate that she was able to land a job that allowed me to come along for the ride. Reason? I guess it all goes back to having some friends (Japanese friends) in the states who moved back to Japan. We visited them here, and decided that it seemed like a cool place to spend a couple years. The toy scene was certainly something that drew me – of course. So far it’s been tough feeling like an illiterate mute… but that is improving slowly, and I am enjoying the experience!
(Flexing Rainbow keshi/cupcake custom resin mash-ups, 2011)
There’s a strong cupcake theme running through your work, can you explain where the obsession came from?
I’m not obsessed…. Though it seems that way I guess. It goes back to the first resin toys I made. Basically, the cupcake sold the best, so I started making other takes on that figure, and here I am now – still doing a bit of the monster Cupcake thing. It is fun to draw the character, and to put him on figures as the head. That’s about as deep as it goes!
(Rampage x Tenacious Toys Mini-Cake blind box series, 2011)
You’ve worked in resin and more recently vinyl, can you explain a bit about how the design process’ differ? Obviously resin is a lot more accessible, but would you ever consider casting vinyl yourself?
I can’t say that I’m likely to ever be casting my own vinyl. Resin will happen again when I return to the states, but for now I’m happy to focus on painting and sculpting. Suffice it to say – resin is much more easily made at home, whereas vinyl is not. There is info on my blog about the vinyl process, here:
http://rampage-toys.blogspot.com/2011/09/making-sofubi-how-it-all-works.html
(Ugly Unicorn GID edition, 2012)
Your first vinyl release, the Ugly Unicorn, has propelled the Rampage Toys name to the forefront of the indie toy scene. How did the idea for the toy/character come about?
Ummm… cupcakes?…The Ugly Unicorn character started as a doodle, and then he fell into the role as the Cupcake Kaiju’s arch nemesis (the UU being obsessed with Cupcakes, and the Giant Cupcake Kaiju being the holy grail to satiate his hunger – of course.). No! I’m not obsessed with cupcakes! Anyway, I developed the Ugly Unicorn further in paintings and screen prints, and then wanted to do a toy. That was around the time when my wife and I were planning our move to Japan, and that gave me a little push to go for vinyl (rather than resin). So, I set to sculpting him, and that’s that.
(Early clay WIP of the Ugly Unicorn)
This year has seen a huge amount of original and collaborative vinyl projects from Rampage, but can we still expect to see some of your trademark resin drops this year?
I’m sculpting three goofey little micro figures right now. I’ll also release a new resin figure in March, and hopefully I’ll have this set of three for the end of April or start of May! Resin is great for doing really small quantities, and it’s also a great medium to keep up collaborations with some American artists!
You revealed details of the promising Rampage x Imps and Monsters collaboration, Manotaur, at the tail end of last year. Can you give us any details on the project? Has a release been set?
How about this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27483582@N00/6915902317/in/photostream
(Manotaur wax cast, Imps and Monsters x Rampage Toys, 2012)
What else can we expect from Rampage in 2012?
Here’s a list :-
-I have a show in Seattle – probably opening on March 8th. That will be all painting (no toys) – Watercolors and Gouache pieces. Most of the show will feature painting collaboration with the shop owner – CakeSpy (Jessie Oleson)! The show will be at her shop on Seattle’s Capitol Hill Neighborhood. Here’s her site: http://www.cakespy.com/
-RAMPAGE TOYS exhibition at Studio Uamou in Akihabara (Tokyo!). This will open on March 22d. Expect 30 (or maybe 50… details are getting sorted) custom Uamous, a run of 10 Exclusive Ugly Unicorns, a new resin release, a mini-collaboration with Resin Artist Peter Kato, paintings, prints, buttons – lots of stuff. I’ll start sharing pics soon! The event flyer can be viewed here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27483582@N00/6916135273/in/photostream
-Manotaur is slated for a late-March release at Emerald City Comic-con in Seattle – YAY!
-A resin collaboration with my Buddy Blurble (Mike Marinello) from Arizona. I sculpted this SWEET figure, and it should be getting molded and cast starting late March!
-I’m sculpting for 3 new mini-sized vinyls. I hope to have these before SDCC. Who likes Dinosaurs 😉 ?
We’d like to give a massive thanks to Jon for taking the time out of his busy schedule to talk about his amazing work. Be sure to head over to his blog and store for regular updates on the weird and wonderful world of Rampage Toys…
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