Tag Archives: toy design

Caty Bartholomew interviewed by Groovy Careers

Little Red Riding Executive by Caty Bartholomew

Sophomore Concepts and Toy Design faculty member Caty Bartholomew was recently interviewed by the fine folks over at Groovy Careers. Caty talked about teaching, working as a freelance artist, and how awesome toys are.  Here’s a snippet:

You are an artist and a teacher. What’s the grooviest part of your work? What’s the most fun? It’s a great balance. Being an artist is a pretty solitary experience. Teaching is outward and group-oriented.

Illustrating is great. I love making pictures, creating characters and stories, communicating ideas. It’s rewarding to see my image in print, in The New York Times, or some other magazine or newspaper, knowing how many people will come across it.

How did you get into teaching?

I was feeling very fulfilled in my freelance illustration career, when a teaching job kind of fell in my lap. I agreed to do it because I have a knee-jerk response of “yes!” to almost any career opportunity that comes my way. I was truly surprised to discover how creative teaching can be. Art school is a rich and stimulating environment. The student work is inspiring and I often invite guest artists to come in and talk about their work. I also enjoy creating a curriculum and crafting the exercises and assignments to support my teaching goals.

Last year we made people-size marionettes of some of the characters in Pinocchio and dangled them out of the eighth floor window to the street. We had a great time and bystanders seemed to enjoy the show.

Here’s the link to our class blog: toyconceptsparsons.wordpress.com

Make sure you read the rest of her interview here.  Stay groovy, Caty!

Still time to see the LUV-able + WEAR-able show at gallery hanahou

ozarba by juan c. ortiz

Caty Bartholomew’s Toy Concept Development and Design class was happy to be invited to participate in this years LUV-able & HUG-able & WEAR-able show at gallery hanahou. The special challenge was this year’s wearable plush component. Students got very creative, with hats, shawls, brooches and neck pillows, among other wearable items. Congratulations to Juan Ortiz, whose character “Ozarba” was ultimately selected as the finalist to be displayed in the show. There will also be an ongoing slide show in the gallery, of all the students’ submissions.

Character name: Ozarba

Ozarba, came from the Spanish word abrazo, which means hug. I just decided to flip the word backwards. Abrazo= Orzarba. He came from a science lab that experimented on hybrids. Ozarba is the mix of a koala bear, rabbit and a snail. He’s in search to climb on anyone’s back, hold on tight. Hybrids that go wrong need love too. Give Ozarba a chance.

The concept behind my toy creation was to make a toy that was wearable but can have more of a function than an accessory. I chose to create a travel pillow. The toys arms wrap around the neck of the passenger. It will move with the passenger as the may wander around in his/her passenger chair. In doing this it will keep the passenger from having pain or stiff neck.

Congrats to Juan and all the students involved!  Amazing creativity!

Luv-able & Hug-able (and Wearable!): through January 14, 2011

gallery hanahou
611 Broadway, Suite 730, NYC
7th Floor of the Cable Building, NW corner of Broadway + Houston
646-486-6586

 

Plush Toys by Illustration students at gallery hanahou!

Luv-able + Hug-able, the popular holiday plush show, returns to gallery hanahou on December 9!

Clockwise from top left: 『trunk』chiyo, Cotton Monster, The Doll Farm, Robyn Fabsits, Angela Davidson, Sayaka Imai, Eloole, Hine Mizushima

Luv-able + Hug-able (+ Wearable!)
December 9, 2010 – January 14, 2011

Opening party: Thursday, December 9, 6-9 pm (RSVP info@galleryhanahou.com)

Get ready for some serious hugging! The 4th annual “Luv-able + Hug-able” plush show kicks off at gallery hanahou on December 9th with more plushes than ever!

More than 50 artists will be stuffing gallery hanahou with their original handmade plushes, and this year’s show will have a special theme of “Luv-able + Hug-able + Wearable!” Many of the cute and kooky plush creatures will double as fashion accessories, making perfect gifts for your holiday list.

Join us on December 9th 6-9 pm for the opening party, where plushes can be taken home on the spot for immediate hugging!

Everyone is getting plush mania! Many favorite plush artists from previous years have returned with new creations, and oodles of new artists are getting involved, including selections from the crafty people at Etsy and Plush You, new plush artists from Japan, and even Caty Bartholomew’s toy design class from the Illustration Program at Parsons.

Artists

Returning

Anna Chambers
Anna Hrachovec
Beth Doherty
Betz White
Corinne Dean
Eloole
Heide Murray
Heidi Kenney
Hine Mizushima
Katie Boyette
Keighty Crochet
Kup Kup Land
Made by Moxie
Melissa Sue Stanley
Robyn Fabsits
Scrumptious Delight
Yummy Pancakes

New

Evangelione
Janae Easton
Margaret Oomen
Norma Andreu
Yoko Nomura
Cotton Monster

From Etsy

Angela Davidson
Curster
Lazy Muse
Love, California
Mimi Kirchner
Ninon
Robin & Mould
Sleepy King
Stellalola
The Doll Farm
Whileshenaps

From Plush You

ChrisCreatures
Devout Dolls
Michael Wright-Ward
Penguin and Fish
Simply Jessi

From Japan

Junie Moon
Kumanta
Michiru
Miyoko Ito
Ossu! Syugeibu
Petit Bran
Risa Tanikawa
Sayaka Imai
SIESTE
Sweet Cream
『trunk』chiyo
Yuriko Sera

2010 Partners in plush

 

 

gallery hanahou approached the great team at Etsy to introduce a list of their favorite plush seller picks. We are happy to introduce 11 all-new “Etsy Picks” to this year’s show! Thank you Etsy!

 

 

As has been the case for past shows, gallery hanahou and Kristen Rask of Plush You!, the popular Seattle plush show, have exchanged artist introductions for their respective shows. This year Kristen kindly introduced to us 5 new plush artists, who also appeared in this year’s Plush You show!

 

At the invitation of gallery hanahou, students in Caty Bartholomew’s Toy Concept Development and Design class at Parsons The New School for Design participated in a competition this semester to create a piece fitting this year’s LH exhibition theme: Luv-able, Hug-able + Wearable. The winning piece, selected by the hanahou team judges, is included in this year’s LH show.

gallery hanahou
611 Broadway, Suite 730, NYC
7th Floor of the Cable Building, NW corner of Broadway + Houston
646-486-6586

*SPECIAL HOLIDAY HOURS*

Mon-Fri 12-6 pm / Sat 1-6 pm

[Closed 12/24/10 – 1/2/11]


press@galleryhanahou.com
info@galleryhanahou.com
www.galleryhanahou.com

Follow up: Toy Workshop at Gallery Hanahou!

On October 19th, Caty Bartholomew’s Toy Concepts Development and Design class was invited to participate in a workshop at Gallery Hanahou, run by “guerilla” crafting club Ossu! Shugeibu from Japan. (Ossu! was in town for a week to attend their show’s opening at the gallery.)

They made “robodogs” in a very quick hour and a quarter, then proudly took them out for a stroll on Broadway. They even caught some interest from passersby and, all in all, had a pile of fun.

Uglycon 3 at Giant Robot New York tomorrow!

uglycon!

Giant Robot is proud to host the third annual Uglydoll convention at GRNY.

In 2001, Sun-Min Kim (Parsons Illustration Alum) turned a drawing on the bottom of letters from David Horvath (Parsons Illustration Alum) into a hand-sewn doll. It was Wage, the first Uglydoll ever. After David brought the piece to the newly opened Giant Robot store, it evolved into a toy with a rabid following – selling out at shops around the world, appearing in movies, creating spin-offs, spawning bootlegs, and inspiring a new wave of stuffed plushes.

This year’s art show offerings will include original paintings by Sun-Min, black-and-white drawings by David, and print-and-drawing sets from Uglycon Tokyo. Also available for purchase will be rare toys such as test samples from past lines, signed prototypes, and “test shots” of kaiju figures.

In the tradition of the first two Uglycons, there will be costume contest in which fans are asked to dress up as their favorite Uglydoll. Winners chosen by David and Sun-Min will receive a bounty of prizes.

And there will be even more, including a sneak peek at a never-before-seen Uglydoll for 2009.

The first two Uglycons caused an online buzz and attracted fans from around the country and overseas. We expect the New York occasion to be even bigger. To facilitate demand and eliminate uncomfortable lineups, raffle tickets for making purchases will be handed out beginning at 12:00 noon. Starting at 3:00, these tickets will be drawn to determine the order of sales.

The opening reception will begin tomorrow at 12:00 noon on Saturday, December 6.

December 6 – January 7, 2008
Reception: Saturday, December 6, 12:00 noon
Giant Robot Gallery
437 East 9th Street Between 1st Ave. & Ave. A
in the East Village
New York, New York 10009

(212) 674-GRNY (4769) | grny.net