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Out of Hibernation
New Works by Chris Austin
August 11-September 3, 2017
BYOB Opening Reception
August 11, 7-10pm
We're excited to be welcoming back Toronto-based artist Chris Austin for his second solo exhibit in our gallery this month!
Join us for the BYOB opening reception, Friday, August 11, 7-10pm for snacks and music by DJ Sean Doe. The artist will be in attendance.
Sales for this exhibit begin when we open at 11am on opening day, and via email to our previews list starting at 2pm (central time) that afternoon — sign up at http://previews.rotofugi.com.
The exhibit continues through September 3, and will be available for viewing 11am-7pm, seven days a week at Rotofugi, 2780 N. Lincoln Ave., Chicago.
About the Artist
Toronto, Canada-based painter and sculptor Chris Austin first exhbited with us as part of 2013's Northern Lights Canadian artist group exhibit and we instantly fell in love with his evocative, lively style and, well, bears. His works, often painted on reclaimed wooden surfaces and found objects, evoke both a love of nature and a striking range of emotion and expression.
We hosted Chris' first US solo exhibit in February 2016 and we're excited to have him back for this new exhibit. Chris will be in attendance at the opening so stop in and say hi!
I hope everyone is having a wonderful April so far! We've survived the grand opening of our tokidoki pop-up shop this past Saturday, though now we're a little light on inventory. We still have a good amount of stuff, but it's about half of the items we started with!
We'll have restock on more tokidoki goodness, including new summer line releases coming soon – stay tuned to our Facebook or Instagram for updates.
Looking forward, we've got two great exhibits coming up in May...
We're All Weirdos, We're All Wonderful
New Works by Michael Slack
May 5-28, 2017
BYOB Opening Reception, Friday, May 5, 7-10pm
Children's Book Reading and Signing, Saturday, May 6, 1-2:30pm
Artist, illustrator and author Michael Slack will be returning to our space for an exhibit of new works, opening May 5. We're in love with just about everything Michael does, including the super fun character cutouts he's shown us for the upcoming exhibit. In addition to new art, we'll also be holding a children's book reading and signing with Michael on Saturday, May 6 so pack up the tots and come out and have some fun! Michael will be reading from his amazing books Monkey Truck!, Elecopter and Turtle Tug to the Rescue! If you have a toddler who loves animals and general silliness, you can't go wrong with any of these titles...we'll have books on hand to purchase.
Join us for the BYOB opening reception, Friday, May 5, 7-10pm for snacks and music by DJ Sean Doe. The artist will be in attendance.
Luna Custom Group Show
Curated by The Bots x UVD Toys
May 5-28, 2017
BYOB Opening Reception, Friday, May 5, 7-10pm
We're excited to announce that we'll also be hosting a custom toy exhibit featuring the Luna figure by The Bots x UVD Toys, opening May 5. Jenn and Tony Bot have curated an amazing selection of artists who will all be doing their own custom version of The Bots' Luna figure: 64 Colors, Ally Burke, Davemarkart, Doktor A, Dolly Oblong,Horrible Adorables, Igor Ventura, J*RYU, Jeremiah Ketner, Jon-Paul Kaiser, MaP-MaP, MJ Hsu, Obsessed Panda, One-Eyed Girl, Otto Bjornik, rxSEVEN, Scott Tolleson, Tomodochi Island & Will Rimel.
Join us for the BYOB opening reception, Friday, May 5, 7-10pm for snacks and music by DJ Sean Doe. Jenn and Tony Bot will be in attendance.
As always, you can sign up for previews at http://previews.rotofugi.com, thanks!
tokidoki Chicago Pop-up Shop
April 8-30, 2017
Grand Opening Celebration - Saturday, April 8, 11am-3pm
Free Gift Bags for First 50 Customers!*
April brings us another super fun pop-up shop, this time with the awesomely cute and fantastic tokidoki! Stop by the store April 8-30 for a great selection of Tokidoki apparel, toys, bags and accessories plus the chance to win prizes all month long!
*Minimum $25 purchase required for Free Gift Bag.
About tokidoki
Headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, tokidoki was founded in 2003 by designer Simone Legno and his partners Pooneh Mohajer and Ivan Arnold. An innovative line of apparel, handbags, cosmetics, accessories and more, tokidoki has built a worldwide following with its larger-than-life characters and designs. The brand’s cult status has fueled high-profile collaborations with Karl Lagerfeld, LeSportsac, Onitsuka Tiger, Marvel, New Era, Hello Kitty, Fujitsu, Levi's, Smashbox cosmetics, Xbox, T-mobile, Fornarina, Skullcandy and Medicom Toy.
©TOKIDOKI, LLC. Designed by Simone Legno
Make it Yummy
Kidrobot Yummy World Popup
March 3-April 2, 2017
Grand Opening Friday, March 3, 6-9pm
For the month of March we're excited to announce we're collaborating with our good friends at Kidrobot to showcase their wonderfully fun and tasty* Yummy World line of toys! We'll be transforming our gallery space into a popup shop we're calling "Make it Yummy" from March 3 until April 2nd.
Join us for the grand opening, March 3, 6-9pm and get the newest Yummy World releases, exclusive posters, and Yummy snacks plus visit Sprinkletree with our YummyWorld selfie photo backdrop for a chance to win prizes!**
* Do not eat, they're toys. Delicious looking, yes, but not actually tasty.
** Stay tuned for more details about how to win some Yummy prizes!
About Yummy World
With signature "googley" eyes and a dashed smile, Yummy World brings life to baked goods, fruits, vegetables, and beyond. Yummy World is a reminder that life is sweet, salty, and most of all, delicious. Yummy World is a exclusive Kidrobot brand and comes in plush versions, keychains and vinyl mini figures.
©2017 Kidrobot, LLC. Yummy World and Kidrobot are trademarks of Kidrobot. All rights reserved.
Sweet Home Chicago
New Works by Cindy Scaife
February 3-26, 2017
BYOB Opening Reception Friday, February 3, 7-10pm
Cindy Scaife was born and raised in Toronto, Canada and she graduated from the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD). For over 25 years Cindy has worked as a full-time professional artist, muralist and art educator.
Cindy is greatly influenced by the art, design and advertising illustrations of the Atomic Age. Drawing heavily from the colour palette and optimism of this era, Cindyʼs work reflects its own nostalgia and innocence. Cindy arrived at her style of art by way of the 1950ʼs advertising industryʼs development and use of the product mascot, an anthropomorphic character used to promote a companyʼs wares to a wide audience.
Her artwork has been exhibited in galleries in the Ontario, British Columbia and Los Angeles.
Sweet Home Chicago is a tribute to Chicago’s rich candy history. With this show Cindy continues her exploration of food and advertising mascots by creating anthropomorphic imagery that examines the origins, cultural influences, history and significance of a variety of food products.
While conducting extensive research into the food items that are specific and significant to the Chicago area, Cindy discovered the city’s unique and noteworthy connection to the confectionery industry. For over a century Chicago has been the candy manufacturing hub of the United States. With this exhibit, Cindy will be highlighting a selection of the candies that have become some of the most beloved and enduring sweets in the United States, all of which have Chicago roots.
Join us and Cindy for the opening reception on the evening of Friday, February 3, 7-10pm where we'll have snacks and beverages (BYOB if you want beer or wine), not to mention awesome music courtesy of DJ Sean Doe.
Works will be available to purchase at the gallery beginning at 11am on Friday, February 3 or via email starting at 2pm the same day for members of our Gallery Previews List (sign up here).
The 33 — A Cabinet of Curious Characters
New Works by BaM! (Bruce Bachelder and Mike Rende)
February 3-26, 2017
BYOB Opening Reception Friday, February 3, 7-10pm
“Check your ego at the door.” is the driving thought when Chicago-area artists Bruce Bachelder and Mike Rende (collectively known as BaM!) set out to create their collaborative art. The artists, both graduates of Northern Illinois University, each start a painting and then hand it to the other to complete. Sometimes they follow the original vision for the painting, but it’s always more interesting when they don’t.
The 33 – A Cabinet of Curious Characters is their newest series of paintings, inspired by a box of old "cabinet cards" that Bruce's mother found while cleaning out her basement. After pulling out all of the relatives she could identify, she planned to discard the remaining photos that were of people she did not know, but Bruce rescued them from that untimely fate and inspiration struck when he presented them to Mike.
Why not bring their ‘artistic misunderstanding’ to a more tangible format? Why not leverage a basic, clear, starting point and build on that? So they embarked on a challenge to create 33 new portraits, each based on a cabinet card from the basement find.
Join us, along with Bruce and Mike, for the opening reception on the evening of Friday, February 3, 7-10pm where we'll have snacks and beverages (BYOB if you want beer or wine), not to mention awesome music courtesy of DJ Sean Doe.
Works will be available to purchase at the gallery beginning at 11am on Friday, February 3 or via email starting at 2pm the same day for members of our Gallery Previews List (sign up here).
