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A Brief History of Kenny Wong

My Impressions of Erosion Molly

Editions of Erosion Molly [show]

Editions of Erosion Molly [hide]

oday we’ll be examining Erosion Molly, a collaborative outing between Kenny Wong and InstincToy . We’ve discussed Japanese artist Hiroto Ohkubo and his InstincToy brand on various occasions before, having delved repeatedly into his fantastic visual style and high production standards through several past reviews ( see here ), but we haven’t had the opportunity to discuss Wong’s work until now.Back in 2000, three advertising agency co-workers decided to embark on a creative endeavor together, which they called Brothersfree . This trio consisted of Winson Ma William Tsang , and, of course, Wong. Inspired by the works of Michael Lau , they began creating their own art figures, with their first exhibition of pieces taking place at August 2001’s Toycon. Immediately finding success with their Brothersworker line consisting of stylized blue collar worker depictions, they collaborated together to great success for several years.By 2006, Wong had formed his own Kennyswork brand, his first series under this identity being Copperhead-18, which was reminiscent of the Brothersfree work. And just as Copperhead-18 was being produced, Wong conceived a very different character: Molly. Embodying a confident, independent, and courageous everygirl, Molly quickly became Wong’s signature creation.In the more than a decade since, Molly has been depicted in a diverse range of attires and guises. But, for the purposes of our discussion, there are two reoccurring elements to note: the oversized, stylized crown adorning her head, and the infrequent angelic wings adorning her back. As for why these are important, we’re going to have to fast forward to July of 2016, when the Taiwanese store Monster Taipei hosted the Kennyswork × Artist Party Show exhibition, which featured 24 Asian artists interpreting Molly.For his contribution to the event, Hiroto Ohkubo created a unique composite of his InstincToy produced pieces, featuring bat-like wings and topped with a crowned Molly head. The concept behind this was “Molly wearing a monster costume”, and it essentially was a precursor sculpture to the Erosion Molly piece.As you can see, the factory production editions of this form became a bit more refined, shifting towards a more dragon-like body, especially in the tail shape and structure of the wings. But it also embodies so many InstincToy elements: the oozing skin akin to that of the inc. figure, though with fierce looking clawed feet, the chaotically hair covered arms like a Muckey tempered with the more cute claws of the Curio creation. And, of course, the brand’s iconic parasite character, Liquid, is located on the backside as well as beautifully being strewn about the crown element.And what makes this Fantasia edition of the form really stand out to me is the contrast between the solid metallic swaths and the light pastel-like tones, which can be clearly seen in aspects of the crown. Creating an interplay between subtle softness and striking boldness, this really accents perfectly the youthfulness exuding from the subtle skin tones. With just the smallest hints of blushing on the cheeks, even the definition of the lip has a wonderfully childlike hue.A truly thoughtful merging of Kenny Wong’s core concept with InstincToy’s aesthetic, the Erosion Molly prototype was first publicly displayed in October of 2016 at the Taipei Toy Festival . The form’s first color scheme, the Green Fairy edition, debuted in April of 2017 back where this project first started, at Monster Taipei. Then, a month later at the Thailand Toy Expo , this Fantasia edition debuted alongside two unpainted versions. And, most recently, a Cherry Tree edition was added to the line in July as well as Mini Erosion Molly versions being announced for release by the end of the year.

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