The Hug Machine

Toy Art Gallery is very proud to present Blamo Toy’s 4th Annual Custom Show! Our good friends at Blamo have invited over 60 artists to lend their talents to Blamo’s newest titan of cute, the HUG! The show will be a HUG-stravaganza with the debut and release of all manner of HUGs, from the fuzzy Hug to the GIANT Hug to the brand-new Hug TEAK edition! The Blamo Toys HUG Custom Show features the following artists: Aleph Geddis (Blamo), Ardi Hermawan, Ayleen Gaspar (October Toys), Angry Woebots, Angie BabyVtec, Betso, Brent Nolasco, Brad Isdrab, Cliff Kirschner (Monstrehero), Chauskoskis, Cortlan Robertson (Blamo), Cody (Forgotten Saints), Chrystie Cappelli, Daniel Goffin, Dean Golez, Dave Correia, Dril One, Eric Frank (AFT), F+, Gary Ham, George Gaspar (October Toys), Fuller, Heather Hansen, Hints and Spices, Hugh Rose, Itokin Park, Jan Calleja, Jason Limon, Jay 222, Jan Hilmer, Johnathan Wayshack, Josh Mayhem, Joycelyn Marsh, Jryu, LASH, Leighton Kelly, Leecifer, Leslie Rainwatter, Lucien Shapiro, Luke Chueh, Marco Mejia, Monica Wallway, Mikie Graham (Blamo), Nathan Hamill, Noel Labelle, Ricardo Felix, Robert Bowen, Scott Tolleson, Sean Blay (Monstrehero), Scott Wilkowski, Spanky Stokes, Super Cooper, Shayne Maratea (Blamo), Spencer Hansen (Blamo), Triclops Studios, Task, Valley Dweller, We Kill You, Yosiell Lorenzo, andLos Angeles based artist Josh Mayhem's lifelong habit of collecting children's playthings has fueled his passion for transforming said toys into objects d'art. Among his best-known pieces are those constituting his “Blown Away” series, in which mass-produced forms are covered in strands of resin and layers of acrylic paint to create gravity-defying drips that give the impression of the work being deconstructed by a strong wind. The popularity of this aesthetic has led to Mayhem winning the Custom of the Year (Fan) award at the 2019 Designer Toys Awards, multiple releases with the many of the worlds top designer toy artists and producers, participating in TRASHed: Art of Recycling at Coachella Festival, and solo exhibitions at Clutter Gallery in Beacon NY, Bruce Lurie Gallery in Los Angeles CA (as well as an artist residency) , PIQ Grand Central Terminal in NYC, and The Crown Collection Gallery in both Denver and Los Angeles. In the process of creating his coveted sculptural works, Josh Mayhem uses gallery-quality canvases as drop cloths. As each becomes decorated with an accumulation of colorful drips, patterns begin to emerge in the artist's mind. Augmenting each one with coatings of synthetic resin and additional paint splashes, these worksThe Toy Art Gallery is the first gallery of its kind to showcase and consult on high-end art toys and sculptures. Our goal is to showcase exciting, original, and new artists who use figurative sculpture as their primary medium of expression. We also focus on showing, collecting, and producing high end, limited edition, custom, and life-size toy sculptures. Our showroom and gallery is located in Hollywood, California. One of our specialties is to provide availability on rare and desirable toys, life-size figures, bronze sculptures, and one-of-a-kind custom figures created by some of the leading artists/toy designers from around the world. We also have an incredible selection of aftermarket fine art originals and prints created by the leading pop surrealist and low brow artists working today. Our aim is to provide the best works from these artists at a fair market value and priced to fit a variety of budgets.