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Thirteen years
ago, three artists united as a group who, lead by Dejo, wanted to
react against the established laws of art under the name of the
Toyists. Using play as the starting point for a new art genre,
they recorded their artistic credo regarding the use of shape and
vivid color in a manifesto. The themes are amongst others, derived
from toys which can be brought to life in order to play an active
role themselves. One beautiful example of this is: cows who want
to look like sheep. The fantasy of toys seems to have gone so far
that the seasons can even be
linked to music genres such as springtime with Jazz, summer with
Classical, autumn with Rock and winter with House music. The
exciting play of smooth lines with sharp boundaries, dots and the
power of bright contrasting colors, gives the paintings an
extremely vivacious character. Existing Toyism philosophies can be
retraced in each piece; translated into clear, direct image.
The world of the Toyists consists of fragments and moments; their
work is often anecdotal but at the same time willful and rich in
fantasy. It is a recognizable world, which nevertheless contains
the bizarre within. In Toyism the story line is essential. As
everything in art as well as politics and sport revolves around
the individual, the Toyists elect to appear in a group and herein
for anonymity. Each one has taken on a pseudonym and portrays
himself as a cartoon-type figure.
Announcements are made public in the form of printed texts and
manifestos without appearing in the media. In the thirteen years
or more that the Toyists have existed, not only has the repertoire
continued to grow (as can be seen from the series of five
publications which have been published since then) but also the
number of artists who have joined them. This number is now nine;
Sassy, Toescat, Dejo, Jaf’r, Miku, Alfago, Link, Fihi and Blaak.
Together they represent the original movement, each adding their
own accent to the expression of the ideas. In this way the style
continues to undergo an explosion in growth, ensuring that future
artists from other countries and cultures who join will make a
definite impact on the movement.
A new step has been taken with the ‘Let the Games Begin’
publication and similarly entitled exhibition. Until now, every
artist has played an individual game within his own composition.
Now, the compositions have become the starting point for everyone,
so that the work of two artists can be combined into one work of
art via certain rules of play. |
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