“Not suitable for children under 17”, says the box of the little Blow-Up dolls. Nothing to do with sex, the bright plastic figurines have a bomb-shaped head with a fuse, and angry eyes telling you they’re ready to blow up any minute. The display of Dunnys — little plastic creatures — on the same shelf states: “This is a work of art, not a toy.”
Dunnys come in a wild variety of designs from cute to downright scary looking, but always with the same basic shape: short, stubby limbs, a round head and ears like those of a rabbit.
Vinyl toys — or urban toys as some prefer calling them — are über-cool. Influenced by hip-hop, comics, skateboarding and graffiti, they fit in nicely with urban street culture. The easily collectable action figurines created by some of the top graphic designers and artists in the world have hit South African shores and are bound to find their way into the playful hands of grown-ups.
The toys are a relatively new thing. Bored with the same old plastic figurines, an award-winning artist from Hong Kong called Michael Lau decided, back in 1997, to spice up some GI Joes and Actionman figures. He designed street-style clothing for them and started to mould his own figures out of vinyl, a durable, soft and smooth plastic. The creations hit the right note at a Hong Kong toy fare and a new craze was born. Initially most popular in Hong Kong and Japan, the vinyl fever soon spread to Europe and the United States where a hip crowd embraced the designer dolls.
“The toys form a bridge between graphic designers and fine artists,” explains Jack Gorton — otherwise known as Phat Jack, one of South Africa’s top deep-house DJs. Gorton has been crazy about these plasticated monsters for over 10 years and has now opened the country’s first vinyl toy shop in Jo’burg’s fashionable Parktown North, with the catchy name Peepshow.
“As a DJ I would fly all over the world and come across all these cool shops everywhere and buy stuff. Back home people would always ask me where I got it from because they really liked it. I’ve actually sold a lot of toys to friends because I would go back to New York the following week or so, anyway.”
Gorton’s always been crazy about toys. Growing up with his granny, he was allowed a new toy every month. “Spoilt, I know.”
Without exception he would go for Ninjas, and GI Joes. “I loved action figurines and I still do. I just never gave up caring for toys, they’re fun.”
The 29-year-old can talk about his toy passion for hours on end, positively beaming when looking around his new shop where colourful vinyl crams the glass shelves of the display cabinets and where the manikin in the window is wearing a life-size Star Wars Stormtrooper helmet. A neon-pink cone-headed plastic doll stands overlooking the cash till, flanked by a bear figurine with gritted teeth and a skull print on its belly.
“These toys are so craftily designed. You can play with them and they won’t break or you can display them in your house and simply admire their beauty.”
But what is it that really makes people crazy about these plastic dollies?
“The quality is really high, nothing like the mass-produced figurines in the toy stores today,” says Gorton. But even more importantly than the quality, it is the exclusiveness and the aesthetic value that guarantee popularity with people in the know.
“Some of these toys are real collectors’ items. They come out blank and are customised by the industry’s most famous designers such as Bill McMullen, who’s also worked for the Beastie Boys and DMX, comics legend James Jarvis and Futura2000, an American graffiti guru from the Seventies.”
Still a bit underground and firmly rooted in pop culture, vinyl toys are coveted by the young and hip urban crowd. The opening party of Peepshow last Friday saw a dynamic mix of filmmakers, graphic artists, musicians, photographers, architects, and fashion designers; exactly the people who pick up the latest trends before anyone else does.
“Some people will never get it,” jokes Gorton. “A friend helping me to set up the store just told me I’ve got a lot of junk.”
Of course all this hip exclusivity comes at a price. On internet auction sites fans bid thousands and thousands of dollars to own early designs or limited special editions. In the Jo’burg store prices range from R80 to R1Â 500. Cheapest are the small Qees, figures to adorn a key chain, miniature Dunnys, and Bearbricks, little bear-resembling creatures with a dozen different designs. They start at R80.
Part of the fun, according to Gorton, is that these small items are blind buys, meaning that you pick a box without actually seeing which one is inside.
“Some designs are really rare,” he says, pointing to the stats on the box. “Collectors would go mad, buy whole trays of these Bearbricks and X-ray them just to see what’s inside. The manufacturer eventually had to wrap the toys in foil to keep them from doing that.”
A few boxes are open, exposing the precious contents and supposedly to give customers a sneak preview, but Gorton’s eagerness to open them is a more probable explanation. “I think I’ve got the whole set at home now,” he smirks, turning slightly red and looking at the floor.
The most expensive item is a Star Wars “Kubrick” toy by Tomy Japan, selling for R1Â 500. It is a 20cm-tall, stoic-looking Luke Skywalker action figure complete with removable helmet, gun and a haircut that would make every Lego-man jealous. “Only 2Â 000 of these were ever made,” explains Gorton.
Bill McMullen’s AD-AT figurine comes at a steep R1Â 000. It’s a cross between an Adidas Shelltoe shoe and a Star Wars ship from The Empire Strikes Back. To a layman it looks like a giant plastic bug with three stripes across its side.
“I’m not so sure I want to sell this one,” Gorton mumbles gently, stroking the 33cm plastic contraption. A lot of the things he sells at Peepshow have been in his possession for a while. “It is time for me to buy new things. I want to constantly keep evolving.”
In this vinyl industry it doesn’t really matter if stuff is not new. The best pieces are often previously owned, the “antiques” rendering the highest prices. Important is to keep the original packaging. “You never, ever discard the box the toy comes in,” tells Gorton. “The packaging is almost as important as the toy itself because it proves the authenticity of the product. If you buy something without the box, eight out of 10 it’s a fake.”
The master has had a few fluke buys himself too. “It is always a risk buying over the internet because you cannot physically see the product. A good tip is to look out for stamps and designer signatures underneath the toy’s feet.”
Dressed in camouflage cargos, an old blue T-shirt and black-and-brown Nikes from overseas, Gorton says he’s allergic to mainstream. “Especially here in Jo’burg, people all drive the same car, wear the same jeans. Everybody goes to the big shopping malls and buys exactly the same. The Diesel and Nike stuff you get here is rubbish, all mass-produced,” he says disapprovingly, his black Armani glasses balancing on the tip of his nose as he scrambles through a box of newly acquired paraphernalia.
It is exactly in this love for the unique that you will also find exclusive clothing and special sneakers in Gorton’s shop. The vinyl toys are definitely the main attraction, but it is also about a bigger picture. The shop’s name seems to be well chosen: “My aim with the store is to show people what’s out there. Explore, experience and don’t settle for standard.”
The other day Gorton got offered a job by Nike where he was to search the world for the new and hip. He turned it down. “Even though I’m mad about sneakers, this toy shop is a dream come true and I was not going to give that up. My life savings are in this shop.”
His enthusiasm is contagious, but is there a market for the quirky plastic? “I think there is,” Gorton says, hesitating for a bit. “But I must admit that it is still for a small crowd. It is a store where you intentionally go to and I have to rely on people who know these products and can appreciate them.”
People like the ones present at the opening. A lot of them already have a vast collection of the vinyl playthings and were ecstatically happy to add more. Not afraid these might be his only customers, then? Gorton’s reply comes with a smile: “But who doesn’t like toys? Toys appeal to everybody!”
And it is with that remark that Gorton pinpoints the true reason behind the vinyl toy phenomenon: the aesthetic figurines make it acceptable to play with toys again. The bright plastic makes even the biggest workaholic feel like a little kid. A small moment of untroubled happiness in a big troubling world.
Peepshow (check the blog)
Mildura Court, shop 2 Corner of 3rd Av. And 7th St., Parktown North, Johannesburg