MONSTER WITHIN

Giant Robot Store, established in 2001 features products from around the world. Notably, fun house wares, gifts, stationeries, t shirts, comics, plush and toy figures. Giant Robot is often cited as the birthplace for Asian Pop Culture products and Uglydolls. GR2 Gallery features art exhibitions by notable artists like Katsuya Terada, Luke Chueh, David Choe, Mari Inukai, Deth P Sun, Rob Sato, Ako Castuera, Sean Chao, Yoskay Yamamoto, Uglydoll, and countless others. Influenced by classic animation, graphic design, and daily life, Joe Ledbetter's art is... well... a lot of things. Light-hearted in its approach, he often combines cute and cuddly creatures with unfortunate — albeit humorous — situations. With a lean on the subversive and absurd, these scenarios are all too familiar, questioning our tendency of taking life (and ourselves) too seriously. While working as a graphic apparel artist for three years, Ledbetter got involved in the Los Angeles underground art scene, beginning with group shows like Cannibal Flower. By the summer of 2004, he had honed his trademark visual style of emblematic line-work, vibrant colors, and endearing characters to the point of quitting his day job. With international appeal, he has had numerous solo exhibitions in Los Angeles, Tokyo, London, Paris, Rome, Toronto, Taipei, Istanbul, and Amsterdam. His incredible cast of creatures have since been emblazoned on over 100 designer vinyl toys, as well as apparel and lifestyle brands, the world over. Buff Monster is best known for his wheat-pasted, street art featuring lumps of ice cream, clouds, and squirting breasts. He needs just a few tones to seize your eyeballs–black, gray, white, and pinks–and his disarmingly sweet imagery has spilled over into the worlds of fashion, collectibles, and galleries, as well as collaborations for the likes of The Standard, Hurley, Vans, Helio, and Nike. For this exhibit, the Los Angeles artist is asking 49 of his artist friends, peers, and colleagues to customize three-inch toys based on his work. A full-color, limited-edition poster will also be made available to commemorate the event and capture the one-of-a-kind pieces.