Three Apples Artists
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64 Colors
Detroit, MI
64 Colors is two people, Laura and Eric. They are independent spirits who collaborate on illustration, graphic design, paintings, customs, characters and toys for private collections & corporate clients all over the world. Their work is a compilation of vintage art, characters, and whimsical creatures which take you to strange, magical destinations. They have just released their first vinyl toy figure, Marshall series 01, which can be found in stores and online all around the globe.
“We feel very fortunate to work with Hello Kitty. Such a prestigious and iconic brand which has been part of our lives since we were little people. Hello Kitty is a classic character based on simple lines and strong emotional appeal which has connected with generations of children and adults all over the world. 64 Colors loves Hello Kitty!”
Find out more about 64 Colors.
AIKO
Brooklyn, NY
Aiko Nakagawa aka AIKO is originally from Tokyo, Japan. She currently resides in New York and is best known for being one of the founding members of the art collective, FAILE. In 2006, she embarked on her solo career. Floral designs, girl cartoons and street pop culture images are all incorporated in her mixed media works. Aiko utilizes both stencil, spraypaint and wheat-pasting techniques to create her vibrant large-scale works which often transform “cupcake” images to playfully portray feminine sexuality and beauty. Being an immigrant from Japan, Aiko has herself been discovering Americana-type pop imagery and recreating it in an innovative way. She has recently shown her work at the Joshua Liner Gallery in New York and at AdHoc Art in Brooklyn with the graffiti artist Lady Pink, as well as galleries in Los Angeles, Spain, London and Tokyo.
“As a Tokyo Girl, of course I grew up with Hello Kitty! Actually I was born in the same year she was. She is everywhere, the busiest cute little character in the world. I also have so much Hello Kitty stuff around me like towels, stationery, clothes, underwear, toys and even little sandwich bags, I love it! The image of her appears in my paintings quite often, it’s becoming my self image on the canvass. Hello Kitty is not only my oldest friend but also iconic symbol to express my self-identity to the world.”
Akiko Masuda
Sapporo, Japan
Akiko was born in the small town of Hokkaido, Japan in 1986. Her specialty is digital content, but she has started to paint at PaintMonster Studio. She loves to draw funny characters and hopes people smile when they see her work!
“I have loved Hello Kitty since childhood. I love her cool face with cute images very much. My characters are probably influenced by Hello Kitty. Arigato”
Find out more about Akiko Masuda.
Amanda Visell
Los Angeles, CA
Amanda Visell lives in the Los Angeles area by choice. She paints cartoon-y pictures and makes things. She did not go to school for this. Her artwork has been seen in galleries and museums nationwide, including an exhibit and exclusive merchandise line at Disneyland, USA. She continues to create original artwork along with toys, books, apparel, limited edition prints, and sculpture all while perfecting her design for the ultimate home robot.
“Say hello for me!”
Find out more about Amanda Visell.
Andrew Brandou
Los Angeles, CA
Andrew Brandou is a fine artist / illustrator / art director living in Los Angeles. He paints in several styles, each drawing from his childhood experience as translated through his adult filters. His work focuses on anthropomorphic animals telling stories and sharing his psyche. Shows have ranged from a history of the Jonestown tragedy to a meditation on his life as an artist. He has exhibited in Los Angeles, New York, London and Bern, and places in between.
Currently he is working on a solo show for the Corey Helford Gallery. Andrew spends his free time hiking and talking to his cats Chloe and Charles.
“Hello Kitty is the godmother of cute and superflat. An icon for children and artists of all ages to appreciate! Hooray!”
Find out more about Andrew Brandou.
Angry Woebots
Honolulu, HI
Born in Honolulu Hi. Angry Woebots moved around the west coast as a youth where he got into graffiti, later moving back and suffered a life changing car accident which moved him to Seattle Washington in 1999. Inspired by the rain and being indoors, he started playing with different art mediums, then moved back to Hawaii. Since his first show in 2002, he has not stopped. Showing in galleries up and down California and the east coast, then throughout U.S., Hong Kong, New Zealand, Munich, Berlin and Japan, his focal medium is acrylic paintings on wood and canvas. Using minimal colors and detailed character design, these paintings are usually comprised of stressed out emotional pandas. Now based in Los Angeles, but representing Hawaii, Aaron has been networking and building on projects taking him further in his career, traveling and painting.
“Hello kitty, has always been around as far as I can remember, my sister was really into it from stationary to little toys and clothing. The Hello Kitty style and character design was before all that is popular now. It is amazing how much foundation it layed for designers and artists today. It is really cool to think about it, from my sister who is older than me and to my youngest niece who loves Hello Kitty stuff, how it still carries its heavy weight status. It’s pretty fresh! “
Find out more about Angry Woebots.
Bigfoot
Brooklyn, New York
Bigfoot is a California Bay Area based nature loving artist,and has been a major influence in the skateboard industry for close to a decade. Originally from New Jersey, young Bigfoot fled to California to be closer to big trees. Disassociated from art school and human society, in 1994 he started writing “Bigfoot” in the streets of San Francisco with relentless fury. Working often with house paint and wooden panels ,his work depicts the conflict between the respect for nature held by the artist’s cast of Bigfoot characters and the destructive agenda of mankind. Despite his reclusive nature, Bigfoot has managed to stay active in society, designing skateboard graphics and footwear, showing in galleries in America and Japan, and releasing his vinyl figure with Strangeco in 2004. His eponymous character and his love of heavy metal (especially the masked rock group KISS) play a major role in his studio work as well as his highly recognized street art.
“It’s a coincidence, because I turned 35 this year too! Also ever since I can remember I’ve wanted to eat those curiously good smelling and colorful Hello Kitty erasers.”
Find out more about Bigfoot.
Bobby Chiu
Toronto, Canada
Bobby Chiu is a Toronto-based artist and the founder of Imaginism Studios. He is known for his creature concepts and other fantastical, quirky characters. Some of Bobby’s favorite themes to explore are disguise, irony, and duality. You can see his creatures in Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”, to be released in March 2010, as well as upcoming feature films from Sony, Warner Bros., and Disney due in theaters in 2010 and 2011.
“If Hello Kitty had an itch on her head, how would she scratch it?”
Find out more about Bobby Chiu.
Branded
Los Angeles, CA
Branded is an experimental based artist that focuses on ideas and concepts about his surroundings. He works mainly on the street with stickers, posters, or paint, conveying thoughts that are satirical in nature. He has used mediums such
“Hello Kitty is a phenomenon that transcends culture race and gender.”
Find out more about Branded.
Brandt Peters
East Coast & Southwest, USA
California native artist Brandt Peters’ unique character designs and illustrations have achieved international recognition and have influenced the animation, music and ‘POP’ top marketplace. His aesthetic embodies and contemporizes the wild retro essence of the ‘Slap Stick’ era with surreal images and characters that balance on the edge of darkness and light and belong in your sweetest nightmares.
“Hello Kitty – both character and branding is easily one of the stronger sources of inspiration for me as an artist and toy designer. She had such a strong pull on my senses and it started all the way back when I was a kid – I was hooked and she knew – that sly minx! er, uh cat… I need coffee, back to painting!”
Find out more about Brandt Peters.
Brian Mccarty
West Hollywood, CA
Brian McCarty is a photographer and art director educated at Parsons School of Design. Working with toys for over 15 years, McCarty’s unique and innovative vision has attracted a huge international following. His postmodern integration of concept and character has earned McCarty’s photography a prominent position in the growing Art-Toy movement. This body of work has earned notable praise from such places as L¹Uomo Vogue, ABC World News, and XLR8R Magazine. In addition to new fine art and commercial projects, McCarty is working on a collection of his Art-Toy photography to be released by Baby Tattoo Books in early 2010.
“It’s been a treat to photograph such an iconic and endearing character. Hello Kitty is loved universally.”
Buff Monster
Hollywood, CA
Buff Monster lives in Hollywood and cites heavy metal music, ice cream and Japanese culture as major influences. The color pink, as a symbol of confidence, individuality and happiness, is present in everything he creates. He was known for putting up thousands of hand-silkscreened posters across Los Angeles and also in far-away places. Now he works exclusively on fine art paintings, collectible toys and select design projects. Buff Monster works tirelessly day and night to spread happiness, joy and a love of pink.
“I love Hello Kitty. I have so much Hello Kitty stuff. Some people who come to my apartment think that a little girl might live here.”
Find out more about Buff Monster.
Caia Coopman
Oceanside, CA
Caia Koopman is a native of California, she majored in fine art, earning a B.A. at UC Santa Cruz, California. After earning her art degree, she turned her attention to snowboarding and spent many winters following the snow. It was her love for the sport that inspired Caia to strive for a career creating snowboard and skateboard graphics and later branching out to become a commercial artist and a fine artist as well. Caia’s paintings have been used commercially for many years as graphics for snowboards, skateboards and wakeboards. She has also been featured on MTV, “mtv sports” as an athlete/artist for her snowboarding and painting. Caia has shown her paintings in a number of galleries around the world, most recently at Spacejunk Gallery in France and at Thinkspace Gallery in LA. Look out for her solo show at La Luz de Jesus in 2010.
“I love Hello Kitty!”
Find out more about Caia Coopman.
Camilla D’errico
Vancouver, Canada
Camilla D’errico is an Italo-Canadian artist who has been making waves in the fine art and comin industries with her manga-influenced style. Ever the prolific artist, Camilla lives the double life of comic artist, character creator and painter. She has expanded her style into designer toys, fashion, merchandise, videogames and even movies. Camilla has distinguished herself through her ability to seamlessly weave comic art and manga with surrealist elements, wrapping it all together with an extensive emotional palette.
“I have nothing but big smiles on my face when I think of Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty makes life ‘un-boring.’ Hello Kitty forever <3
Find out more about Camilla D’errico.
Carrie Jardine
Venice, CA
Carrie’s paintings are an exploration of the human form and it’s relationship with the earth and environment. Her influences range from the elegant and sometimes abstract qualities of 20th century art nouveau, to the elaborate and embellished work of Boticelli & Da Vinci, to the soft and feminine photography in early Playboy magazines.
“She’s a classic!”
Find out more about Carrie Jardine.
Chase
Hollywood, CA
Chase, a Belgium-born artist/designer has created more than 125 murals throughout the world, including the Los Angeles area where he now resides. His inspirational, soul-searching work spans several disciplines including street art, original paintings, graphic and product design.
Named by Italian Vogue as one of their favorite artists in the world, Chase has appeared on television and has been featured in more than 40 magazines from over 6 countries. His clients include Western Union, Puma, Levi’s, Scion, Acura and Bloomindale’s.
Find out more about Chase.
Colin Christian
Riverview, FL
Born in London on March 30th 1964, Colin left school at 15 and worked as a dj and a stage manager and in 1989 met his future wife Sas. They moved to the US in 1992 where they owned a small couture latex clothing company and it was this experience, along with a long time interest in the creation of movie special fx, that Colin began to produce fiberglass figures and displays. In 1998 his first production figure “Suki” was born a towering 7′ tall and anatomically correct. Colin finds inspiration in science fiction, pinup girls/supermodels, science, nature and ambient electronic music. In 2004 he started using silicone, a difficult material, but one that helps him achieve his goal of true cartoon realism, a line drawing made flesh taking the exaggerations and perfections of cartoons and making them into a realistic 3-D form.
“Hello Kitty ranks amongst the best of character design and I was thrilled to lend my artistic vision to it.”
Find out more about Colin Christian.
Crowded Teeth
Los Angeles, CA
Crowded Teeth is the magical and awesome design factory from Michelle Romo.
“I love Hello Kitty! She has been my friend since I was a baby.“
Find out more about Crowded Teeth.
Dan Goodsell
Los Angeles, CA
Dan Goodsell is the creator of the World of Mr Toast, a place populated by a group of oddball characters including Mr Toast, Joe the Egg and Shaky Bacon. Mr Toast’s life and adventures are chronicled online at www.MisterToast.com. Dan lives in Los Angeles with his wife and small dog in a tiny apartment filled with old toys and ephemera of days gone by.”
“Hello Kitty & Sanrio have always been a part of my life. I remember buying Tuxedo Sam pencils when I was a teenager in the 1980’s. As an artist I marvel at the way Hello Kitty captures the hearts and imaginations of generation after generation.”
Find out more about Dan Goodsell.
Deph
Grand Terrace, CA
Deph [deaf] was born and raised in the smallest city known to man called Grand Terrace, Ca. If you blink, you will miss it. In the early years of his life, Deph was overwhelmed by the look, the smell, and the style of art so bad he could taste it. He knew he had to have his hands on it. His early exposure to art came from many artists growing up. From there he soon picked up a spray can and began to find a medium he loved. Graffiti and music have become major influences in his art today. Still to this day he strives to find new techniques in his art that will influence someone the same as the artist that have inspired him. He is a self taught and well motivated artist. Deph has created many illustrations and paintings that have been displayed on toys, cars, movies, video games, skateboards, snowboard outerwear, t-shirts, posters, print ads, and many more. His work has been shown in many galleries and events across the US.
Find out more about Deph.
Devil Robots
Tokyo, Japan
Devil Robots is a 5 man design team established in 1997 and based in Tokyo, Japan.
Main works include graphics, character design, audio-visual, web design, toys, CD jackets, clothing, and more! A little evil and robotic fun is their taste, and the original world of “Cute and blackness” is in the effect. Their symbolic character TO-FU OYAKO is well-known world wide.
“We collaborated with Hello Kitty for our 10th anniversary exhibition. Now, we will collaborate again for Hello Kitty’s 35th anniversary. We are honored to collaborate with one of most famous characters from Japan, which we grew up with.”
Find out more about Devil Robots.
DGPH
Buenos Aires, Argentina
DGPH is about experimentation in all the visual areas, having fun at work, doing what we really like. DGPH is a design + visual arts studio dedicated to illustration, art installations, experimental design and motion graphics formed by Diego Vaisberg, Andres Vaisberg and Martin Lowenstein.
“Hello Kitty is the first character design with a complete background and possibility to develop any possible product for the worldwide audience. She is the cute / kawaii character by definition. And she is what any character designer is trying to achieve someday.”
Find out more about DGPH.
Edwin Ushiro
Culver City, CA
Beginning his journey as a native from the island of Maui, Edwin Ushiro traveled to California where he attended the Art Center College of Design and attained a BFA in Illustration with honors. From there he ventured onto a film career as an Art Director, Visual Effects Consultant, Storyboard Artist & Concept Designer on projects such as: “CSI Miami,” “Battlestar Galactica: Caprica,” and “Angel.” Continuing an urge to explore his own projects, Edwin has recently expanded onto the gallery scene. His personal art can be viewed at exhibitions in Berlin, Zurich, Tokyo, New York, and including The Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, Insa Art Center in Korea, and the Museum of Kyoto in Japan.
“I owned a blue Hello Kitty backpack in pre-school because the child who sat next to me had one. I idolized his technical ability with crayons on coloring books. He outlined the image first, then applied light pressure to shade in the space. Never would you see him coloring outside of the line. I wonder if he ever caught on that I stole his technique.”
Find out more about Edwin Ushiro.
Elizabeth Ito
Pasadena, CA
Elizabeth Ito is a fourth generation Japanese girl who’s lived in California her entire life. She has an English degree from UCLA, and a degree in Character Animation from Cal Arts. Currently, she is working at Sony Feature Animation as a story artist. In her free time, she makes plush toys and eats tasty foods.
“I’ve known Hello Kitty my entire life, and am honored to be paying tribute to her in this show!”
Find out more about Elizabeth Ito.
Frank Kozik
Coming Soon!
FriendsWithYou
Miami, FL
FriendsWithYou (FWY) is a Miami-based art collective established in 2002 by artists Samuel Borkson and Arturo Sandoval (aka Sam and Tury). FWY specializes in spreading Magic, Luck, and Friendship by creating memories and once in a lifetime experiences. From giant blimp-parades to pop-up theme parks, playgrounds, bounce houses, collectable designer toys, merchandise and apparel, as well as commercial work for hire, FWY seamlessly incorporates an element of magic into all of their work. FWY was created with one basic concept in mind, to become Friends-With-You!
Find out more about FriendsWithYou.
Gary Baseman
Los Angeles, CA
Pervasive Artist. Painter. TV/Movie Producer. Toy Designer. Curator.
The LA Times describes his art “adorably pervasive.” One of the leaders of the Los Angeles underground art movement, who coined the term “pervasive art,” Mr. Baseman blurs the line between toy culture and fine art with his strong iconic images, both playful and dark, childlike and adult, id driven and thought-provoking. Mr. Baseman has exhibited around the world in Rome, Los Angeles, NYC, Taipei, Barcelona, Sao Paulo, Berlin, Pasadena Museum of California Art, paintings and sculptures in MOCA Shanghai, and at the Laguna Art Museum. Mr. Baseman’s previous incarnations include the three-time Emmy award winning creator/executive producer of the animated series and film, “Teacher’s Pet,” The New Yorker, Time, and Rolling Stone artist; and designer for the best selling game, “Cranium.” Entertainment Weekly Magazine named Baseman as one of the 100 Most Creative People in Entertainment. Baseman’s newest book, “Dying of Thirst,” based on his work from his solo exhibition “I Melt in Your Presence,” at the Modernism Gallery in SF has been published by Last Gasp.
Find out more about Gary Baseman.
Huck Gee
San Francisco, CA
A native of the UK, Huck Gee moved to San Francisco in the early 90s to pursue the venerable life of a b-boy. Over the last few years, the demand for Huck Gee’s Toy Art and illustrations has grown immense. With pieces in the NY MOMA and Christie’s Auction House, and small runs of hand crafted Art Toys and original prints selling out in seconds online and shipping to art collectors worldwide. Huck now runs a studio in San Francisco with several assistants and the coming years bring a full schedule with signings, events and appearances planned the world over. When not busy planning world domination Huck spends his free time chasing skirts and pretending to be a race car driver.
“Looking back, I think Hello Kitty may have been one of my earliest impressions of Japanese pop culture and character design. An area of design that has had a huge impact on my artistic direction. I’m quite excited to be involved in this project. Hello Kitty FTMFW!”
Find out more about Huck Gee.
Hush
United Kingdom
Hush’s work has been described as a sensory assault of shape, color, and character. Inspired by the portrayal of the female form in art, the artist builds up and tears down layers of paint and images as he works, “letting the canvas and marks take their own path.” The result is an enigmatic synthesis of anime, pop-infused imagery and graffiti that exposes the conflict between power and decay, innocence and sexuality, and the fusion of Eastern and Western culture. Hush continues to evolve his style with this latest batch of pieces, which merges his early anime and pop-art influenced graffiti technique with an exploration of Romanesque iconographic imagery. The new works are bigger, deeper and richer than anything he has produced to date. Hush is stimulated, influenced and driven by his cross cultural experiences. Having originally trained as a graphic designer and illustrator at Newcastle School of Art and Design, his work has taken him across Asia and Europe, whilst simultaneously developing his prominence as a contemporary artist. Hush now resides in the UK painting in his studio daily.
Find out more about Hush.
Jason Han
Covina, CA
Jason was born in Taiwan in in ‘81 and moved to California when he was a few months old. Drawing and doodling with his brother was always fun when he was a kid, as he was one of Jason’s main inspirations, next to comics and cartoons. He grew a passion for computers, art, and business when he got older and finished college with a BFA in graphic design. He combines his fine art and digital aesthetics together in his illustrations. His art revolves around his imagination and life experiences tied along with any given theme or concept.
“I want to hang out with Hello Kitty.”
Find out more about Jason Han.
Jason Kronenwald
Toronto, Canada
Jason Kronenwald graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1997 and now lives in Toronto with his wife, daughter and son and produces his Gum Blondes. Each Gum Blonde is 100% chewed bubblegum on a plywood backing. No paint or dye is used – the color is inherent to the gum. Kronenwald has been featured in various publications including Spin Magazine, New York Times Style Magazine, Mass Appeal, Instinct and FHM. He is represented by Le Gallery in Toronto and has had recent solo exhibitions in Toronto and group shows in London and Los Angeles.
The Hello Kitty art piece is made with Hello Kitty strawberry bubble gum!
Find out more about Jason Kronenwald.
Jason Mecier
San Francisco , CA
For over a decade, artist Jason Mecier has been creating outrageous three dimensional mosaic portraits of his favorite pop culture icons made out of their actual junk! The portraits are made from celebrities broken sunglasses, make-up, gum wrappers, jewelry, deodorant, shoes, and many other items that they have contributed to the project. Participants include Phyllis Diller, Rosie O’Donnell, Paris Hilton, Pam Anderson, Farrah Fawcett, Florence Henderson, Nancy Sinatra, Elvira, Pink, the Go-Go’s, the B52’s, Scissor Sisters, Anna Nicole Smith, Tammy Faye, Morgan Fairchild, Tori Spelling, Parker Posey, Ricki Lake, RuPaul, Kathy Najimy, Margaret Cho, Barbi Benton, Tura Satana, Susan Tyrrell, Stepfanie Kramer, Joan Van Ark, Heidi Fleiss and now Hello Kitty. Jason hopes to one day trade art with Marilyn Manson, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Jane Seymore and Yoko Ono.
“I love Hello Kitty!”
Find out more about Jason Mecier.
Jeremyville
Sydney, Australia and New York City, NY
Jeremyville grew up in Wonderland Avenue, Tamarama, a sleepy beachside suburb of Sydney, right near Bondi Beach. Jeremyville is an artist, product designer and author. He self produced his first mass 3D inflatable designer toy in 1995, and wrote the first book in the world on designer toys called ‘Vinyl Will Kill’, in 2003. He has also written and produced his 2nd book ‘Jeremyville Sessions’, and recently has worked on several toy projects with Kidrobot, with more coming out through Kidrobot soon. He has been in group shows at Colette Paris, the Madre Museum Napoli, the 796 Arts District in Beijing, and Giant Robot in New York. Converse recently released a Jeremyville Chuck Taylor high top, and Juxtapoz featured Jeremyville in a 12 page article in January 09. He now splits his time between his New York and Bondi Beach Sydney studios.
Jeremy’s parents named him after the blue animated character Jeremy Hilary Boob Ph.D, (the ‘Nowhere Man’) in the Beatles’ movie Yellow Submarine. An auspicious start to a career in art and character design.
“I’ve always wanted to collaborate on a Hello Kitty project, ever since I first started out drawing, so this is a long time dream for me, that has come true.”
Find out more about Jeremyville.
Jermaine Rogers
Coming Soon!
Jim Mahfood aka Food One
Los Angeles, CA
Jim Mahfood aka Food One is an illustrator/comic book artist/muralist/live art rocker residing in LA. Projects include illustrating Kevin Smith’s Clerks comics, his own Grrl Scouts books, several Spider-Man books for Marvel, (and tons of other comics), the ad campaign for Colt 45 in ‘07, the murals in the Sarah Silverman Program, his ongoing artbook series, Mixtape, the Kick Drum Comix mini-series (both published by Image Comics), and more.
Jim has worked for every major comic book publisher and contributed art and comix to such magazines as Playboy, URB, BPM, Heavy Metal, Spin, Mad Magazine and more. His new, ongoing autobio strip, Los Angeles Ink Stains, can be seen at foodoneart.blogspot.com
“Hello Kitty = Pure Magic”
Find out more about Food One.
Johnny Yanok
Copley, OH
To see Johnny Yanok not wearing a gentle smile would be a rarity. When experiencing his work it is clearly understood where the contagious grin comes from. His art brings the viewer to a wonderful place of humor, a twinkle of years past and sometimes a simple quirky connection; just imagine what it does to the creator. Evident inspiration for Johnny is Mid-century style. This, along with traditional gouache painting techniques and digital media make his work truly unique. Johnny’s paintings and sculptural works are exhibited in galleries internationally. His commercial work spans advertising to entertainment.
“I have been a fan of Hello Kitty and her awesome graphic style for years and years. We also share a few things in common- the same blood type, love of apple pie, and we are both five apples high. Happy 35th, Hello Kitty!”
Find out more about Johnny Yanok.
Jupey Krusho
Los Angeles, CA
Jupey Krusho is an LA based artist who’s work is made up of art, games, books, toys, plushies, zines, accessories, stationery, comics, apparel, and other fun treats. Aside from doing occasional artwork for music videos and Hollywood films jupey focuses on spreading cheer and delight through dynamic art and merchandise spanning from Los Angeles to France. The true power of Jupey resides in the unpredictable assortment of characters, properties and styles ranging from mild to wild.
“Hello Kitty is the epitome of fashion X lifestyle and taught me that a simple design with heart can have a positive global impact. An official theme park, ambassadorial roles, appliances, various games and tv programs, endless toys, dolls, books and clothing – it all began where it always begins, with one artist’s vision… arigato gozaimashita, Ikuko Shimizu
Find out more about Jupey Krusho.
Kathie Olivas
Tampa, FL
Kathie Olivas is a multi-media artist who resides in Tampa, FL and Albuquerque, NM with her husband and fellow artist, Brandt Peters. At 32, she has been featured in numerous galleries across the globe and is represented in the permanent collection at the Tampa Museum of Art. She received her bachelor’s degree in visual arts from the University of South Florida and has been exhibiting her work since 1996.
Find out more about Kathie Olivas.
Kei Acedera
Toronto, Canada
Kei Acedera was born in the Philippines and raised in Toronto, Canada. Her work has appeared perennially in Specturm. While she was an art direcor at Imaginism Studios, she illustrated the New York Time best-selling book, “How to Talk to Girls.” She was also a character designer for Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”, due for release in 2010.
“Hello Kitty was a big part of my childhood! Every girl I knew had at least one Hello Kitty item, whether a pencil case or an eraser or something! It’s amazing how Hello Kitty’s popularity has endured and even expanded out of Asia and into North America! And now, the little seven-year-old in me is so excites to be part of this show!”
Find out more about Kei Acedera.
Ken Tanaka
Coming Soon!
Luke Chueh
Coming Soon!
Mad Barbarians
Tokyo, Japan
Mad Barbarians is an illustration / design unit comprised of Katsuya Saito and Masumi Ito.
With “MAD, POP, ROCK, CUTE, and STUPID” as their main concept, they produce a wide range of designs and products with their original characters, including figures, advertisements, CD covers, and more. The release of their “Gas, Curry & Spice” figure gathered attention in which they began to attend various exhibitions and autograph sessions internationally. Their collaboration with Levi’s was a big hit and their most recent collaboration with Hello Kitty has been a huge success in Japan, U.S. and in Europe. They aim world domination with MAD Characters!
Find out more about Mad Barbarians.
Madoka Kinoshita
Osaka, Japan
Madoka Kinoshita, born in 1980, draws characters with big pupils. Her work was featured in “Digmeout 04” in 2003 and the “MOVING KYOBASHI” project where she created a 40 meter mural. Her art has been used in corporate advertising campaigns including “Kansai Walker’s 10th anniversary event and the “RESONART” ATM project.
Find out more about Madoka Kinoshita.
Mari Inukai
Beverly Hills, CA
In 1995, Mari came to the US from Nagoya, Japan to pursue her studies in art. She attended Santa Monica Community College, then Associates in Art, and finally California Institute of the Arts, where she received her BFA in Character Animation in 2004. Her professional works include Disney Consumer Products, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, O entertainment, Nylon Motion Inc., Oishii Productions and NGTV. Her short animated film, Blue and Orange, has been an official selection at numerous national and international film festivals, including the Sundance Film Festival 2003, and was the Japanese Grand Prix winner at the Short Shorts Film Festival EXPO 2005. Besides her animation and production works, Mari regularly exhibits her paintings and drawings, and designs clothes, ceramic toy figures and other fun products. She lives in Beverly Hills with her daughter, Sena.
Find out more about Mari Inukai.
Mark Dean Veca
Los Angeles, CA
Mark Dean Veca was born in 1963 in Shreveport, Louisiana, and received his BFA in Painting at Otis Art Institute in 1985. His work has been shown throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan at institutions such as PS1/MOMA, The Drawing Center, The Brooklyn Museum, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Reviews of Veca’s work have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times, Juxtapoz, Artforum, Art inAmerica, and Flash Art. He received fellowships from The New York Foundation for the Arts in 1998 and 2002, as well as a grant from The Pollock-Krasner Foundation in 2006.
Find out more about Mark Dean Veca.
Martin Hsu
Silverlake, CA
Martin Hsu grew up in Taiwan and the US being surrounded by Sanrio products. Tuxedo Sam was his childhood favorite, but Hello Kitty has never left his side. In 2006, he started his own self titled company and started creating t-shirts, books, and other products for the hip and unhip. Nowadays, he’s exploring the galleries for his passion of acrylic on wood while working in the animation industry as a character designer.
“The ingenious design of Hello Kitty and its marketing have made a major impact on my personal artistic direction and outlook. I have no doubt that it will continue to inspire me for many more years.”
Find out more about Martin Hsu.
Marty M. Ito
Sapporo, Japan
Marty was born in Hakodak, Japan in 1968 and is a professional doodler and sculptor. He manages the PaintMonster ArtStudio which produces acrylic paintings, sketches, prints, sculptures, and reproductions. His specialty is creating “happy work.” If you see his work, we wishes you to have happy feelings
“What’s up, Hello Kitty! You can probably understand Japanese! Yeah me too! Genki desuka Kitty-chan? Watashi was anata no youna STAR ni Naritai desu! You are loved by many people. I want to become a beloves star like you, too! Happy 35th Anniversary!
Find out more about Marty M. Ito.
Mear One
Los Angeles, CA
Mear One is based in Los Angeles and has committed a double decade of conscious art with a deep level of self-introspection and aesthetic language. These studies consist of deep spiritual, political, scientific subject matter to articulate a stream of consciousness to evolve through his work. The realization of this has quantified a new definition of artisan and evoked the term “Ismology”. Ismology is the culmination of all the Ism’s (Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Catholicism,) and the Ology’s (Archeology, Anthropology, Sociology, Psychology, etc.) interweaving into a visual definition that critiques with symbolic and allegorical depictions. Mear’s past started out on the streets as a graffiti artist and evolved into the visionary Dr. of psychedelic art, a scientist of mental aesthetics.
Find out more about Mear One.
Melissa Contreras
Santa Monica, CA
Melissa Contreras is an illustrator based out of Santa Monica. A Central California native, she moved to L.A. to attend UCLA and received a BA in Fine Art in 1998. Since then she has done many odd art-related jobs here and there, from designing t-shirt art to teaching stop-motion animation to kids. As well as showing in galleries internationally, she has just finished illustrating her first children’s books. Melissa loves to draw from dreams and imagination, working mostly with gouache and acrylics, sometimes applying them to sculpted forms. Her latest pursuit is a jewelry line based off of her illustrations.
“I have always had Hello Kitty in my life. We are practically the same age! I used to love to get the grab bags at the Sanrio store in the mall when I was a little girl. More recently, I have been collecting Hello Kitty toys from boxes of Japanese candy. I dream of one day traveling to Japan and visiting Puroland!”
Find out more about Melissa Contreras.
Melissa Haslam
Melbourne, Australia
Melissa graduated with a Bachelor of Computing (Multimedia Technology) from Deakin University. However, after working in computer graphics for a few years she found herself wanting to push her creative skills further and went back to school to study Visual Arts at RMIT, focusing on painting and drawing. With an emphasis on narrative theme and a romanticized, escapist view of the world, her paintings are populated by beautiful adolescent women in fairytale-like scenarios, allowing her to explore the transitional stage between innocent play and the adult psyche.
“You can’t help but love Hello Kitty and be drawn into her strange, adorable world!”
Find out more about Melissa Haslam.
Melly Trochez
Los Angeles, CA
As a child I was very shy and often very bored. I would close out the world and spend hours laying on the floor creating fantasies about what I could be doing. I wanted to marry Casper the Ghost or Leonardo the sexiest of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Today, I still don’t take life too seriously, I enjoy reflecting on memories that are whimsical, humorous and meaningful in my personal journey. And most of all I love to paint. Currently I am working on a graduate degree in Art Therapy and I just completed a massive beautification project at Johnnie Cochran Middle School. Next I must have a body of work together soon for my third solo exhibit for early next year.
“My heart has always been happiest when I’m around a Sanrio store. I remember being a child and fantasizing about their grab bags, or their pencil cases and the way that their products smelled. There is a special unique quality that only Hello Kitty and other Sanrio characters offer. I’m a fan of the super cute movement in art, fashion, people or anything. I secretly still buy their surprise grab bags.”
Find out more about Melly Trochez.
Michael Banks
Orlando, FL
Michael Banks (coallus) is from Orlando, Florida and paints broken stars that represent perserverance. He has been an artist since his first memories. Starting from melting crayons on the sidewalks as a child in the florida heat and on through pens, tattoo flash, tattoos, street art, pop art and now oils which have consumed his life. He has to keep moving forward. He can not stop, he has to tell his stories through his art.
“Hello Kitty is one of the greatest icons ever. Cute, simple, and fun. You can’t help but smile when you see her. She fits perfectly in my fun, candy filled worlds.”
Find out more about Michael Banks.
Michelle Valigura
Los Angeles, CA
Michelle Valigura lives in Southern California where she writes, sculpts, and sews the days away. Her artwork can be viewed around the country at galleries and Disneyland USA. She has a product line made by Switcheroo which has been featured in a number of publications such as Bust magazine, LA Times, and Dot Dot Dash.
“One of the best things about the town I grew up in was the little paradise in the Tacoma mall full of magical Hello Kitty things that seemed like they were from some secret dream land.”
Find out more about Michelle Valigura.
Misha
Hollywood, CA
Misha although born in the Midwest has always felt a connection to the Far East. At a very young age Misha wanted to move to Japan and live in the shadow of Mt. Fuji. As she grew older she kept being drawn to the art, music and food of Asia. Her work is a fusion of Anime, Tibetan religious imagery, Tattoo style as well as Traditional Japanese art and design. With all these influences she has developed a collection of cute big eyed girls that charm and pull you into their world. As well as painting Misha also is a graphic designer and professional tattoo artist; influences from tattooing can be seen in her shading, choices of color and bold line work.
“I got into Hello Kitty later than most, in my early 30’s. Hello Kitty to me represents all things cute, sweet and innocent. I’ve been collecting Hello Kitty Merchandise for several years now which culminated in my trip to Sanrio Puroland in the spring of 2008 where I got to meet Hello Kitty. It was a magical day for me and I actually teared-up a little during the end of day parade because I was so happy.”
Find out more about Misha.
Mori Chack
Coming Soon!
Natalia Fabia
Los Angeles, CA
Natalia Fabia is a Los Angeles based fine artist. Natalia graduated from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Inspired by light, color, punk rock music, fashion, hot chicks and sparkles, which fuels her large oil paintings of sultry women. Her paintings are very colorful and lively and there are always hidden treasures to find in their backgrounds. She also has a company called Hookerfeathers, specializing in custom jewelry and clothing. Natalia also produces many live events, including fashion shows in which she designs all of the clothing.
Find out more about Natalia Fabia.
Nate Frizzel
Los Angeles, CA
A recent graduate of Otis College of Art and Design, Nate has spent his time since graduation dedicated to painting and honing his style. Using bold and colorful images of people at play – and in turmoil – Frizzel creates intimate stories that mask his own feelinds of immaturity. Using both highly rendered images and softer design elements, Frizzel weaves stories into his paintings that we all can see ourselves being part of.
“I heart Hello Kitty!!! Kawaii!!!!!”
Find out more about Nate Frizzel.
Peekaboo Monster
Los Angeles, CA
Peekaboo, an L.A. transplant from Seattle, has been creating a world of mayhem and monsters for the last 7 years, expanding the universe they live in. When not painting, Peekaboo enjoys running his gallery “The Ronin Gallery” in Echo Park, designing toys, and hanging out with his stinky dogs, Mr. Magoo and Genghis Kahn.
“I will steal yo’ apples, kitty…but I still love you!”
Find out more about Peekaboo Monster.
Persue
San Diego, CA
Before creating Bunny Kitty, Persue has been working in the action sports industry for over 17 years. He is a skilled graphic designer, illustrator, aerosol artist, and footwear designer. His natural artistic talents have been featured in numerous magazines and books. He has a long list of accomplishments, such as, creating graphics, logos, and brand identities for many well-known companies. But Bunny Kitty is by far his proudest creation to date, because the character and the story mimics the life of the creator.
Find out more about Persue.
Peter Chan
Toronto, Canada
Peter was born in Hong Kong and raised in Toronto, Canada. He began drawing and painting at a very young age, and has been featured in several independent galleries in Toronto, Philadelphia, and New York. Peter’s work is inspired by fascination with the unknown; all of our imagination, fantasy and magic in the world has seeds in what we do now know about or understand, and it’s from these things that springs the greatest art.
“When she was young, my sister collected Hello Kitty items. Today, Hello Kitty is not just a cute character, she has become a major part or our international pop culture!”
Find out more about Peter Chan.
Plasticgod
Los Angeles, CA
Plasticgod’s 1000+ heads are of a soft satire that makes a statement on pop culture in a fun whimsical way with finesse of detail in a refined recognizable caricature style. As an internationally known artist dubbed the “21st Century Warhol” and celebrated for his minimalistic style he’s sold works to an extensive list of 100 or more music and Academy Award winning movie celebrities including Bruce Willis, Malcolm McDowell, Paul McCartney, Robert Downey Jr. including Swiss Ambassadors. Plasticgod has exhibited in over 100 shows across the world along with coverage on MTV real world, and press in Vogue, Elle, Entertainment Weekly while giving back with donations from his sales to charity including cancer research, animal rights, Special Olympics , human rights, “green” foundations and numerous others.
“Does Hello Kitty have a boyfriend?”
Find out more about Plasticgod.
Plex Lowery (aka KnifexLife)
Los Angeles, CA
Born out of circa ’90’s HIp Hop, 1950’s pulp erotica paperback coversand Dick Van Dyke show reruns, Plex Lowery’s styles are both nostalgic and modern. A strong proponent that sequential art (comics) should be as much of respected artform as any other, he uses older americana techniques to bring to life contemporary works. He has also been known to travel miles and miles just for a decent cup of coffee…
“To me, Hello Kitty represents the eternal kid that is in all of us. I know it sounds corny, but it’s true!! No matter how old we get on the outside, the comfortable feeling that Hello Kitty brings out of so many of us proves that a part of the youth inside of us will never die, no matter who you are…”
Find out more about KnifexLife.
Punchgut
Fargo, ND
Given the wide array of images that greet any visitor to the Punchgut’s website, it’s not hard to believe Punchgut when he comments that his favorite piece of his own art is always the one he’s currently working on, looking at, or fomenting ideas for while in the midst of a late night catfishing expedition. Drawing his inspirations from stimuli as varied as illicit firecracker packages, 80s video games, distorted photocopies, wood carvings and outsider art, sailor tattoos, and cartoons of every kind.
“ハローキティ”
Find out more about Punchgut.
Ron English
Beacon, NY
Renowned pop artist Ron English has exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide for over twenty years. His work engages a unique sensibility, in which the familiar is reflected through funhouse mirrors into something startlingly new. He was features in the hit movie, ”Supersize Me,” and has appeared on television in the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia. He is also the subject of two award-winning documentaries, “POPaganda, the Art and Crimes of Ron English” and “Abraham Obama”. Ron has produced five books, including “Son of Pop” and “Abjext Expressionism.”
“Ron loves putting a little “English” no icons and Hello Kitty is certainly one of the world’s biggest and most deserving of a little artistic love.”
Find out more about Ron English.
Shane Jessup
Brooklyn, NY
Mr. Shane Jessup is an illustrator/ designer working and living in Brooklyn, NY.
Working evenly between acrylics and digital media, Shane addresses his own issues with love, religion, and pop culture with an obvious sense of humility and humor. Mr. Shane Jessup works out of his home studio in Brooklyn with his dog, is horrible at video games, and is known to never answer his phone.
“Hello Kitty Rocks!”
Find out more about Shane Jessup.
Slick
Gardena, CA
SLICK made a name for himself during the early 90’s scrawling his name on walls from Hawaii to Los Angeles. He helped pioneer painting techniques for characters that revolutionized the art form. Since then, he still gets up on the streets but not with spray paint. He helped establish a whole new genre of lifestyle clothing called “street wear.”
Find out more about Slick.
Simone Legno
Los Angeles, CA
Simone Legno was born in Rome / Italy (June 1977) and has always loved drawing, ever since he was a kid and had boxes full of chewed, broken, unsharpened pencils. In 2004 Simone moved to Los Angeles to develop his own tokidoki apparel, art and lifestyle brand. tokidoki is a happy world. It is a cute, playful and pure, yet provocative, sophisticated world that Simone imagines, lives, and dreams of. tokidoki means “sometimes” in Japanese. He chose a Japanese word because he loves everything about Japan, from the ultra modern happy face of Shibuya to the serious magic silence of Kyoto. He chose “sometimes”, because everyone waits for moments that change one’s destiny … by chance or by meeting a new person … tokidoki is the hope, the hidden energy that everyone has inside, giving us the strength to face a new day and dream about something positive that something magical will happen to us.
“I love cute characters, they are the most simple but expressive form of communicate the human expressions and feelings. It was a honor for me to collaborate with the most popular cute character in the world, the icon of the Japanese kawaii. I am a guy but have been always very proud to say I am a big fan of her and have Hello Kitty lifestyle products around my life.”
Find out more about Simone Legno.
TADO
Sheffield, United Kingdom
TADO is Mike and Katie from Sheffield, UK. They make illustrations and designs for clients and happy folk worldwide.
“Happy Anniversary Hello Kitty!! We’re overjoyed to be part of your celebrations!”
Find out more about TADO.
Tara McPherson
New York City, NY
Tara McPherson is an artist based out of New York City. Creating art about people and their odd ways, her characters seem to exude an idealized innocence with a glimpse of hard earned wisdom in their eyes. Recalling many issues from childhood and good old life experience, she creates images that are thought provoking and seductive. People and their relationships are a central theme throughout her work.
Tara exhibits her paintings and serigraphs in fine art galleries all over the world. Named the crown princess of poster art by ELLE Magazine, she has created numerous gig posters for rock bands such as Beck, Modest Mouse, and Melvins. Her array of art also includes creating toys with companies like Kidrobot, Dark Horse, and Toy2R, painted comics and covers for DC Vertigo, advertising and editorial illustrations for companies such as Wyden+Kennedy and Spin Magazine, and teaching a class at Parsons in NYC.
“Hello Kitty is my generation’s ultimate ‘cute’ icon. I’ve been in love with all the artwork since the moment I saw it.”
Find out more about Tara McPherson.
Tessar Lo
Toronto, Canada
Tessar was born in Indonesia. In 1989, his parents brought him to Canada.
soyez amoureuses, vous serez heureuse.
d’où venons-nous? qui sommes-nous? où allons-nous?
“Hello Kitty meets her true love with lapinlapin. I’m not a big fan of cats, but she’s a kitty I can love.”
Find out more about Tessar Lo.
Thomas Han
Coming Soon!
Tim Diet
San Francisco, CA
Tim was born and raised in the Bay Area, CA while sneaking out of his parents house at night and literally “tagging” alongside his older brother in the 80’s. Tim was introduced to the graffiti lifestyle. Starting from a small town Tim Diet has traveled across the U.S., Europe, and Japan just to paint. His well-recognized work has been published in many magazines and books. These days, Tim Diet’s work can be found not only in the streets but in galleries as well.
Travis Louie
Red Hook, NY
Travis Louie was born in Queens, New York, about a mile from the site of the 1964 World’s Fair. His early childhood was spent making drawings and watching “Atomic Age” Sci-Fi and Horror movies. There were many Saturday afternoon trips to the local comics shop and noon matinees at the RKO Keith’s cinema on Northern Blvd. , where he marveled at the 1950’s memorabilia: the rocket ships, the superheroes, the giant monsters, and old pulp art covers. He did thousands of sketches of genre characters like Godzilla, King Kong, and a host of creatures from Ray Harryhausen movies. After high school, he went to Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated with the intent on pursuing a freelance illustration career. After a few years freelancing, he created a body of paintings and began showing them in local art galleries. To achieve the dramatic “mood” in his paintings, they are produced primarily in black and white or limited color. He uses acrylic paints over tight graphite drawings on smooth grounds, like “plate” finish illustration board or finely sanded, primed wood panels.
The influences for his work are many; the genre films, his fascination with human oddities, circus sideshows, old Vaudeville magic acts, Victorian portraits, and things
“I’ve been strangely attracted to the cuteness of Hello Kitty since I first saw the character in a Japanese grocery store on Main St. in Flushing, NY in 1985. I’m excited to be working on this project since my daughter is also a fan.”
Find out more about Travis Louie.
Yoko d’Holbachie
Kanagawa-ken, Japan
Yoko was born in 1971 in Yokohama Japan and studied design at Tama Art University.
Find out more about Yoko d’Holbachie.
Yoskay Yamamoto
Los Angeles, CA
Born and raised in Toba, Japan, Yoskay Yamamoto moved to the United States at the age of 15. A self-trained illustrator, Yamamoto’s artistic tastes expanded as he fell in love with the pop culture of California. Yamamoto discovered a way to fuse the two different cultural backgrounds together into his work. Yamamoto nostalgically blends pop iconic characters from his adopted western home with traditional and mythical Japanese elements, balancing his Asian heritage with urban pop art.
Find out more about Yoskay Yamamoto.
Yosuke Ueno
Tokyo, Japan
Yosuke’s art shows art all over the world.
“Kitty is an extraordinary character that would be loved by people forevermore. I would love to create characters like Kitty. Congratulations on the 35th anniversary!”
Find out more about Yosuke Ueno.
Yumiko Kayukawa
Seattle, WA
Yumiko was born and raised in the small town of Naie in Hokkaido, the north top island of Japan. By the age of 16, her work debuted in comic book (Manga) features. She graduated from the Hokkaido College of Art and Design and began to show art work in the US in 2001. She has lived in Seattle since 2005.
“I went to Hello Kitty 30th anniversary Exhibition in Japan and there I bought Hello kitty wallet witch I’m still using. Hello Kitty is my friend since I was a child, and I’m so happy to be a part of this exhibition.”
Find out more about Yumiko Kayukawa.
