DIY FIGURES - Recreate your own Icon

As we continue our look at the our DIY collection this week, we wanted to pull out the iconic characters that make for excellent customs. Take Kei Sawada's 6" CUCUMOUSE DIY figure above. We are releasing a few during the 08 TTF show but not to worry, they will be offered domestically as well. In addition to the WHITE DIY version, we will be offering a limited run of BLACK DIY CUCUMOUSE figures too...more info to follow.

For now, take a look at the other iconic characters we offer to broaden the DIY genre....


HOMER SIMPSON - talk about a great figure to customize. Hopefully we will be getting this figure shipped in the next couple of months as we know a lot of collectors have been requesting him for some time. Another question posed by fans is will there be another world tour similar to the BART tour we held...the answer is still not definite. We would love to hold another tour, especially based on the response to the BART TOUR. We have more than 200 artists across the globe who participated, so that gives you the scope of how daunting these tours can be. That's a lot of folks to get together for one major show - but who knows...the future is filled with possibilities.

As for the BART DIY - these are pretty much sold out, so if you find one, snag it because even we don't have these guys sitting around. However if you want a real treasure, head over to the QEE forum and keep an eye out for the BART AUCTION taking place very soon. It will be your chance to pick up one of the original customs from the BART TOUR.


Then there is HELLBOY, yet another bad boy who's upcoming film has everyone tensed up for more action. Granted this figure took a lot of work to get just right but we think we have captured Hellboy's essence in this DIY figure. While this figure isn't available everywhere - customs have popped up. One of the more amazing pieces was Tara McPherson's "Hug Life" version available through Dark Horse.

BABY QEE EGGQ x JASON FREENY - YOKELS

Wow! Now that is a great take on the BABY QEE format. Major kudos to artist Jason Freeny at MOIST PRODUCTION - this collection of figures brings a whole new dimension to the DIY figure. Just had to post it due to the focus of DIY figures this week. Head over to Jason's site for more original customs.

D.I.Y. QEE PROJECT: 10" BART SIMPSON AUCTION

D.I.Y. QEE Project: 10” D.I.Y. Qee Bart Simpson Auction @ Toy2R Forum (www.qeeland.com)

Auction Date: July to Aug, 2008

D.I.Y. QEE Project: 10” D.I.Y. Qee Bart Simpson has just completed the Art Exhibition World Wide Tour. Now is your chance to own these one-of-a-kind original Bart Simpson Qees. Toy2R will be holding the 10” D.I.Y. Qee Bart Simpson Auction on the Toy2R Forum (www.qeeland.com) featuring more than 90 Customized 10" D.I.Y. Bart Simpson Qees by Artists and Designers from across the globe. The auction will be held from July to Aug. Proceeds of the sales will be donated to Red Cross.

List of artists and designers who have contributed original customs to the auction:
A.I / Plastic Pimps, Alan Yip, Attaboy, Attila / 600Poundgorilla, Aye Jay!, B.Wing, Bernhardt Geyer, Bill @ Enterbay, Blutt, Ewok 5MH, Buff Monster, Cameron, Clutter Magazine, CUPCO!, Dan "R5" Barojas, Danny Chan, David Lanham, David Van Alphen / DVA Gallery, DGPH, Doke, Drills, DYZLA, E.S Klein, FL@33, Gabe Lanza, HELLOPIKE, Idan Shani, Idle, INU Art, Ippei Gyoubu, Jeff Gaither, Jeremiah Ketner, Jeremy Pelt, Jeremyvill, Jerome Outland, Jo Bling , Joe Simko / Sweet Rot, Joey D, Joey Potts , Jon Burgerman, Joseph Somers, KaNo, Keith Poon, Ken Keirns, Kenny Wong, Lahn Lenore, Lounge Kat, Mad Barbarians, Mark Nagata, Matt Sharp, Matthew Connelly, MCA, Meggs - Everfresh Crew, Michael Nunez, Michael Scavetta, Mike Yurkovic, Miss Mary Chan, Nasty, Nasty Neil (Thick Magazine), OKN, Orlando Camacho, Paul Leung, Peabe, Peter Kato, PHONETICONTROL, Plasticgod, PO!, POP Prolific, ReviseCMW, Rinzen, Ron English, Ryan Kitson, Sam Fout, Sasha Huber, Slobot, Shawnimal, Stacey Gee, Stephen Blickenstaff, Tamar Moshkovitz, Tim Blackmore / Qeester, Tim Murtagh, TMBOO, Triclops, Tristan Eaton, Tyson Summers, Ultraman, Vega Tsai ( 蔡燦得), Veggiesomething, Voltaire, Yoink, York@Enterbay

Don't miss out on these amazing originals...all for a great cause too!

Paris Tout P'Tits TOY AUCTION Collaboration (Collette x Toy2R) Qee Show at Collette

You've got to drop in at our friends over at Hypequest to check out the coverage on this fantastic event for a very important cause. You can also check out our friends at Toycyte who have the info in English!

Colette is holding a public exhibit of the customized Qee from June 9th to 14th. On June 17th and 18th, Christie’s Paris will hold a one-of-a-kind Qee auction with the proceeds going to Paris Tout P’tits.



We would also like to shout out a huge thank you to COLETTE and all of the artists involved - THANKS!!:
Aldebert, André, Caroline Attia, Marguerite Bartherotte, Lorenz Baümer, Ben, Carole Benzakem, Pascal Bernier, Luc Besson, Adeline Blondiau, Jaya Bludeau, François Boisrond, Jacques Bosser, James Brown, Bunka, Christophe Brunnquell, Laure Callens, Jorge Camacho, Rebecca Capeau, Antoine Camus, Cassandre M., Victoire de Castellane, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Eki Chow et Léna Schiltmans, Lucien Clergue, Philippe Cognée, Vicky Colombet, Comoseta, Jean Cortot, Cecilia Cubarle, Paul Davis, Nathalie Decoster, Alber Elbaz, Jaek El Diablo, Jean Faucheur, Jeff Fisher, Sylvie Fleury, G., Stéphane Goddard, Isabelle Gros, Mozart Guerra, Laurent Gugli, Troy Henriksen, Catherine Henriette, Camille Henrot, Nick Higgins, Philippe Hiquily, Paul Holland, Arnault Joubin, Yann Kempen, Stéphane Kiehl, Kika, Peter Klasen, Michel Klein, George Koskas, Titouan Lamazou, Sophie Leblanc, Frédéric Léglise, Yoann Lemoine, Charles Léonard, Momo Maréchal, Federica Matta, Pierre Mathieu, Philippe Mayaux, Nada One, Ora Ito, Rick Owens, Philippe Pasqua, Catherine Pioli, Mina Poe, Patrice-Flora Praxo, Andrée Putman, RCF1, Claudia Ravnbo, Hervé di Rosa, Julianne Rose et Betty Rose, Sonia Rykiel, Benjamin Sabatier, Sich, Alexandra Soubies, Ara Starck, Philippe Starck, Anne Steinlein, Hervé Van Der Straeten, Sunset, Jeanne Susplugas, William Sweetlove, Tanc, Teurk, Janine Van Thungen, Joana Vasconcelos, Xavier Veihan, MariaManuela Vintilescu, Kathy Wolff, Esther Wuhrlin, Yom, Kimiko Yoshida et Zao Wou Ki.




As a sneak peek - here's what we have in store to commemorate this fantastic event:


and let's not forget our 1.5" Zipperpull Qee Bear too:

CUSTOM FLASHBACK - FREQEE Exhibition - Brisbane

Flashback to the FREQEE Exhibition from Brisbane. Check out the slick customs from this show. If you haven't seen them before, there were some great submissions.

For more, check out the images by Practicecactus. A great photo history of the show!

60" QEE by Tim Tsui & Alice Chan at Galeries Lafayette

Check out the scoop through our friends at VINYL PULSE and view more images of these two amazing 60" QEEs.

APW - Qee Customs

Every week we find more cool customs hitting the web and are simply amazed at the amount of talent out there working on DIY Qees. Today we wanted to take a special moment to recognize APW for the incredible customs being produced. You can check out more of these creations on the APW Flicker Site but for now, gaze at these beauties. We are simply awe struck...great work!!

Also, head over to the APW site at APWARTS , you will be very pleased!






And then there's Bart Simpson - AMAZING!!

Customs...another look back...with a force!

Had to post this image when I was going through some old images...even though the MCA Qee Bear is amazing....Darth Qee is menacing! Glory be to the empire!!...but don't miss the SWATCH Qee in the back!

Qee Custom Lookback

This is a new thang I'm gonna start. Its a look back at some cool customs by well known and unknown artists over the past few years. Using Qees as a blank canvas is both fun and yet challenging. Trust me, I know! There are so many folks out there cranking these customs out and they should all be recognized.

Qees give you a platform to express your passion, thoughts, dreams and more. Thanks to TOY2R for giving us the Qees to our future! You know, when these things first hit, we are blown away and then the next one comes out and so on. So in honor of all the hard work these artists have done, here's a tip of the hat to you. Thanks for making the world that much cooler with your customs!!

New Additions to the BABY QEE Series

Well you knew it was only a matter of time before the BABY QEES had some new siblings. Introducing the newsest releases in Wave 9, EggQ and SprayeeQ. Then in Wave 10 we give you BalleQ, ToyerbbQ and BoxeeQ. Both versions come in the "devil" style featuring a cute little pointy tail on the back of each Baby Qee. Seeing how the Baby Qees have grown in demand for DIY purposes, these new formats should give artists new ideas for some great customs. Expect these cuties to begin dropping at the end of the year.

Bart Simpson Qees Take On The UK

The 10" QEE D.I.Y. Project: Bart Simpson Art Exhibition takes on the UK this month. Toy2R and Diamond Comics are proud to announce that Forbidden Planet will host an exhibit of more than 50 customized Bart Simpson Qees.

EXHIBITION RUNS FROM: 10th October – 4th November 2007
Can be seen at:
London Megastore – 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR
Bristol Megastore – Unit 4, Clifton Heights, Bristol, BS8, 1ED

Here's the offical announcement:

Forbidden Planet is proud to announce that we are the ONLY UK stop on the worldwide tour of the Toy2R and Diamond Comics’ 10” Qee D.I.Y Project: Bart Simpson Art Exhibition. From 10th October to 4th November 2007 you can see the exhibition on display in our stores front windows. The tour marks the launch of the licensed line of Qee figures based on The Simpsons characters.

Some of the most influential pop culture artists, designers and illustrators from around the world were giving a blank 10” Qee of Bart Simpson to customize however they liked. They painted, sculptured and re-imagined the blank Barts to make a totally original creation based on their own style. It seemed like a natural thing to mix one of the most iconic characters of modern times with the most cutting edge creatives around today, most of who grew up watching The Simpsons.

The Qee figures are a part of the Vinyl Toys culture that started in Japan and has become a phenomenon throughout the world. Qee’s were created by ToyR2 and can be as small as 2” tall or a massive 2 feet high. Urban Vinyl is now being recognized as an art form worth investing in as the figures are mostly limited editions and highly collectable.

The Bart Simpson Qee tour has already been to LA, New York, Paris, Florence and Rome. Forbidden Planet is the only place in the UK you can see this exhibition. The tour will finish in Hong Kong at the end of the year and the majority of the customized figures will be auctioned off and all proceeds will go to charity.

Forbidden Planet will also be selling blank Bart Qees so people can do their own one off designs!