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At the 2022 Taipei Toy Festival TTF Chuku Kobo booth, a colorful and vibrant bear soft vinyl toy named "FRIDAY BEAR," featuring strong hand-drawn lines, captured everyone's attention. Its relaxed and playful aura deeply captivated the hearts of toy collectors! A year later, Toy People had the privilege of interviewing the creator of "FRIDAY BEAR"—British artist Rob Kidney, who has lived in Japan for over 20 years. He is not only an active artist and illustrator across various fields such as music, fashion, and magazines, but also the owner of the Tokyo gallery "WISH LESS."
Taking this interview opportunity, the Toy People editorial team asked him to share the story behind "FRIDAY BEAR" and his rich creative experiences! Dear toy collectors, let's get to know Rob Kidney better and explore his adorable creations further through the following interview content~
Toy People: What was your major in school? What kind of work did you do previously?
Rob Kidney: After graduating from high school, I began a two-year apprenticeship in lithography at the London College of Communication and worked in the printing industry for a total of nine years. At twenty-five, I enrolled in a two-year part-time art foundation course at Northbrook College in Worthing, which I used to acquire skills and build a rich creative portfolio. I then pursued an illustration degree at The University of Brighton, and after completing my studies at thirty, I began working as a freelance illustrator.
Toy People: What prompted you to open the gallery 'WISH LESS' in Tokyo? How does 'WISH LESS' select its exhibition content?
Rob Kidney: At the time, I was an artist/illustrator, and my wife Yoko was a freelance graphic designer. I had already been living in Japan for ten years and started to feel lonely from spending long hours alone in my studio. I knew it was time for a significant change. A common topic (and feeling) between Yoko and me was our frustration with the lack of artist-run alternative galleries in Tokyo. I had many creative friends in the UK who were eager to exhibit their work in Japan and often asked me to recommend suitable exhibition spaces for them. And so, the idea of opening our own gallery was born.
We spent a year searching for a suitable area and storefront (space) in Tokyo, and we chose the quiet Tabata neighborhood on the Yamanote Line. A hundred years ago, Tabata was known as "Japan's Montmartre," and it was once a bohemian quarter for painters, poets, and writers.
Since opening in 2012, our curatorial process has been dedicated to showcasing Japanese and international artists whom we truly love and respect. Providing overseas artists with their first solo exhibition in Japan has been a very meaningful experience for us. Our goal is to maintain a high standard of exhibitions to inspire and uplift audiences, rather than chasing art trends.
Toy People: How did you start launching your own toys?
Rob Kidney: Bringing my original characters to life in 3D has been a dream of mine for many years. As an artist who constantly creates new characters, choosing one to develop into a soft vinyl toy was a real challenge. While living in Tokyo, I discussed making toys with several companies, but I never found the right partner. One day, at my gallery, I was introduced to the founder and CEO of the Tokyo toy manufacturer "Kenelephant." I showed him a selection of my favorite character illustrations, and he said they had the potential to be developed into soft vinyl toys. After many discussions, we chose to develop my character "FRIDAY BEAR" into a soft vinyl toy.
Toy People: Could you please share your experience working with 'Chuku Kobo'? For example, what is the process for launching a piece? (Sketches, prototypes, coloring, etc.)
Rob Kidney: 'Chuku Kobo' is Kenelephant's art toy division, and since I had never made a soft vinyl toy before, working with them was a real education. The first step was to draw side and back view illustrations of FRIDAY BEAR, which I found very challenging, so I decided to also create a clay model to try and capture his body shape. I was very fortunate to work with one of Japan's best toy sculpting studios, and when I visited the studio and saw the first wax prototype of FRIDAY BEAR, I was speechless!
Their attention to detail and execution of the rear view was incredible. I requested two small changes: first, to make his nose smaller, and second, to make him a bit plumper. It was important that the first color version be as close as possible to my original illustration, so I used DIC color swatches to specify the colors. For the packaging, I decided to use a transparent paper box that allows the contents to be seen, as it reminded me of the toys I loved when I was young. On the back of the box, I included the original FRIDAY BEAR illustration, as I felt it was necessary to show how talented model makers can capture the personality and vitality of the original illustration in a soft vinyl toy.
Toy People: What is the origin of the name 'FRIDAY BEAR'?
Rob Kidney: FRIDAY BEAR is the first toy I ever made. I think it's best if FRIDAY BEAR introduces himself!
"My name is FRIDAY BEAR, and I live and work in Tokyo. I don't really enjoy my office job in the city, so every Friday after work, I cheer myself up by digging for second-hand dance records in Shibuya. On my way to the record store, I often take a break in a small park, drinking a can of beer or a cup of sake, which always makes my face turn pink! When I'm digging for second-hand records, I forget all my worries, but I often spend too much money buying rare records.
I always carry a twelve-inch vinyl record bag in my right hand and a seven-inch vinyl record bag in my left, which over many years has caused my body to become slightly twisted (strained) and has given me a slipped disc in my lower spine. Most of my money is spent on vinyl records, so I can only afford to buy a cheap, shiny suit from a discount store. Because I often eat junk food for dinner in my small apartment after digging for records at night, I've gained weight, and it's a bit tight."
Toy People: How do you usually find inspiration for your creations? Do you have any special rituals?
Rob Kidney: As an artist, my daily life involves drawing every day, constantly imagining and developing new characters. Some of these characters will never be drawn again, while others will be refined and developed and given personalities. My inspiration comes from my life in Tokyo; this city provides visual stimulation, especially enriching the illustrations of charming characters in everyday life.
The inspiration behind FRIDAY BEAR is a great example: I love digging for second-hand records, and I often go to record stores in Shibuya on Friday evenings. I noticed that most of the other customers in the store, having just finished work, were wearing suits and intently browsing the record shelves. Thus, the idea of a hardworking, suit-wearing bear who loves buying records was born!
Toy People: Among all the works you've created so far, which one is your favorite? Why? Which one left the deepest impression on you during its creation?
Rob Kidney: It's truly difficult to pick one specific work as my favorite, but collaborating with the British electronic music duo Basement Jaxx on their second album "Rooty" for XL-Recordings (an independent record label) was a truly life-changing experience.
Rob Kidney's design for Basement Jaxx's "Rooty" album cover Image credit:TurntableLab
I had just graduated from university and was asked to create illustrations and hand-drawn typography for the album cover. I also created illustrations for all the singles released from the album. This led me to produce animated visuals for their stage performances and co-direct the music video for the song "Jus 1 Kiss." I truly enjoyed working closely with these talented musicians and was very eager to provide artwork that could genuinely visually represent their unique sound. At various points in my career, I've been fortunate enough to work in the music industry, which I consider to be an incredibly valuable experience.
Toy People: What kind of environment do you prefer to create in? Please share a glimpse of your studio with everyone!
Rob Kidney: My workspace is divided into two small studios. One is a clean space for sketching and creative development, housing my music collection, including vinyl records and CDs, turntables, and a library of art and design reference books. The other studio is primarily used for painting, coloring, and other miscellaneous activities. Since I'm an artist who likes to have materials readily available, both studios are quite cluttered. Music is the backbone of my creative practice. I usually burn 10-hour (instrumental) Techno DJ mix MP3 CDs for the studio, and I find that these put me into a trance-like state, allowing me to get lost (in a good way) in the creative process. I'm fortunate that my studio building has no neighbors, so I can turn up the volume as much as I like!
Toy People: Besides your own creations, do you collect other toys or items? Are there any new toys you've been particularly fascinated with recently?
Rob Kidney: In fact, over the past decade, I've streamlined my toy collection. When I first came to Tokyo, I spent a lot of time digging in places like Nakano Broadway and had many collectibles. Recently, I've become fascinated with Japanese resort souvenir toys from the 70s and 80s; I love the colors and materials used in them. I feel these souvenir toys exist somewhere between mass production and handmade craftsmanship.
A charming new toy that recently joined my collection is Pamela Sustaita's "Lamby" doll, produced by Ediciones Figuritas in Mexico. I love Pamela's art, and this toy model truly captures the essence of her representative work, plus it's beautifully packaged.
Toy People: What are your interests outside of creation? Please give your fans a chance to get to know you better!
Rob Kidney: My true passion is digging for second-hand records, CDs, antiques, and books. Tokyo is a great place to satisfy my craving for these things! I also enjoy DJing with 7-inch vinyl records at small bars and clubs in Tokyo. I also love taking care of houseplants and have collected many; my favorites are palm trees, cacti, and carnivorous plants.
Toy People: Please write down your answer (or draw) to the question, "What are toys to you?"
Rob Kidney:
Toy People has collaborated with British artist Rob Kidney to launch the Toy People exclusive edition of "FRIDAY BEAR - TOY PEOPLE Ver." lottery sale information, which has now been revealed!~
Follow Rob Kidney's latest creations!
→ Rob Kidney Instagram
→ "WISH LESS gallery" Instagram
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→ kenelephant Official Website
→ kenelephant Instagram
→ Nakayoshi Kobo Official Website
→ Nakayoshi Kobo Instagram