Monday, October 12, 2009

Can You Believe Giant Robot is 15 Years Old??

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Holy Shit. I can't. I remember when the first issue came out and I was "Hey, this is pretty cool. A magazine for Asian Americans!" Giant Robot is groundbreaking, before it's time and a survivor. Amazing really. Not only has the magazine survived, GR is a retail empire which holds it's fair share of art exhibitions with some of the best and brightest in the industry. Some may say GR is the eastern version of KR, but I won't. I will say that I've always wanted GR to get more into Japanese Toys, but perhaps the reality of the world is that hip T-Shirts and books make more revenue. Happy Birthday GR...!!


October 24, 2009 - January 24, 2010
Opening reception: Saturday, October 24, 2009, 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

Japanese American National Museum
369 East First Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
janm.org
(213) 625-0414

In 1994, Giant Robot was born with the purpose of documenting and promoting new, up-and-coming, underdog, overlooked, and hybrid Asian and Asian-American popular culture. Fifteen years later, the self-published magazine has not only evolved from a stapled-and-folded zine into a full-color, glossy publication with an international following, but also opened trend-setting shops and influential art galleries in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City. To celebrate the magazine's longevity, energy, and loyal readership, the second Giant Robot Biennale is being hosted by the Japanese American National Museum in Downtown Los Angeles from October 24, 2009 to January 24, 2010. The event will feature several exhibits, including the following:

To provide a visual overview of the Giant Robot aesthetic, publisher Eric Nakamura is curating artwork by individuals who have contributed to shows at Giant Robot's galleries, been featured in the pages of the magazine, or even contributed cover art. The main hall will include installations by David Choe, James Jean, and Souther Salazar, in addition to Theo Ellsworth, kozyndan, Stella Lai, Jack Long, Albert Reyes, Jeff Soto, and Deth P. Sun. A second hall will include the contributions of more than 50 others. (A complete list will be made available at www.janm.org/exhibits/gr15/home.)

The photography of longtime magazine contributor Ben Clark will also be featured in a retrospective. Clark's powerful images from past issues will be displayed in a larger, more vibrant print format, accompanied by recollections, explanations, and other ramblings by editor Martin Wong.

The roots of Asian popular culture--the kaiju scene introduced by Godzilla, Gamera, other giant monsters, and the toy industry they spawned--will be paid tribute to by a run of collaborative works made by Japanese indie sculptor and artist Yukinori Dehara, UglyDolls co-creator David Horvath, and Portland, OR-based underground toy legend LeMerde.

In addition, four custom videogames have been developed by the Attract Mode collective in conjunction with some of Giant Robot's favorite artists. These games were made exclusively for the Game Over/Continue? show at GRSF (March-April, 2009) and will be available for play throughout the exhibition's stint. The artist and developer pairings include Hellen Jo and Derek Yu, Saelee Oh and Anna Anthropy, Souther Salazar and Petri Purho, and Deth P. Sun and Jonathan "Cactus" Soderstrom.

An opening reception will take place from 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 24, featuring live music and attendance by many of the participating artists and key members of the Giant Robot family.

The show will run from Saturday, October 24, 2009 to Sunday, January 24, 2010. For more information about Giant Robot magazine or The Giant Robot Biennale 2: 15 Years, please contact:

Eric Nakamura
Giant Robot Owner/Publisher
eric@giantrobot.com
(310) 479-7311


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From Le Merde: Here is our (Dehara,David,Merde) collab interchangable 3 headed figure. These are them unpainted. We each will paint up 7 sets. Each set comes with 3 heads and a body. Good times!

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All pics stolen from Le Merde's Flickr

UPDATE: Check out the Exclusive Gargamel x Le Merde Bangal for the Biennale. Can't go wrong with clear pink vinyl...! Pic via Eric Nakamura's Blog

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