This past weekend as I was roaming around with Paul, I stopped into Toy Tokyo. It was someplace I hadn’t really been in a while, and I forgot how much I loved. It’s one of those places that reminds me how cool New York is/was, and takes me to a really happy place. Unfortunately, I’m a collector (not hoarder), so it’s very hard for me to go into places like this and not spend money. So I avoid them.
Most of the things in these places are what I view as accessible art (sometimes accessible, not always). They’re often limited pieces, specially made for a special audience. They look awesome, they’re always conversation pieces, and I love them. If anyone knows me, even just a little, they know how happy these collectibles make me.
Some people view these things as trinkets or tchotkes, or worse yet, toys, but they are none of those things. They are designed by artists. They’re important pieces that will likely one day be in a museum. And I’ll have some of them!
Anyway, I won’t end this blog post with a resolution, or say whether I spent money. I’ll just leave you with artist Marcel Dzama‘s Melting Snowman to inspire you.
The proceeds of the Snowman were to go 826NYC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. I hope they still have that in place!