Andy
June 26th will see one of the most anticipated collaboration between Fluffy House & UAMOU come together to release, not one, but two custom sofubi toys. This limited series of Specially Customised Uamou will be for a worldwide release.
“In this collaboration, Mr. White Cloud and Little Raindrop’s happy faces appear as lovely patterns on the UAMOU collection. If you look at them carefully, each of their faces were hand-painted by Ayako Takagi which makes each and every one truly unique!”
This run of Special Uamou is released in a limited quantity of 30 sets and will only be available at the Fluffy House online shop!
Find Fluffy House via http://fluffyhouse.com/ , Facebook , Instagram and Twitter.
Uamou’s creator Ayako Takagi gives an insight Japanese paint master living legend Master Gotowhere she gets her art toys painted.
VISITING MASTER GOTO
It is a rainy day as we arrive at a quiet outside station of Tokyo. Normally it is a 15 minute walk to the paint-shop but Ayako tells me that Master Goto will pick us up with his car because he is worried about the bad weather. This was going to be the first time I was going to meet the legendary master-painter and I had been looking forward to it for a long time. From around the corner a small cubic vehicle approaches, inside, one of the kindest smiles inviting us to get in the car.
Master Goto is known for the amazing paint work he does for Studio Uamou and many other independent outlets. Ayako and Master Goto have been working closely together for years and without fail he gives form to the many ideas that Ayako brings to him. He mostly keeps to himself and works fulltime in a battered little shed behind his house. “I recently fixed the roof!” he reassures us with a big smile as we step inside. His workshop is small and dark. Apart from a table and two chairs reserved for his customers the entire studio is cluttered with boxes, cans of paint and blank toys. Behind a small counter Master goto sits down on the floor where he takes orders, not much unlike a barman but in this case instead of mixing drinks he mixes paint. This is the place where he painted for half a century and it is no exaggeration that there are almost a million people out there who own something that has been painted by Master Goto.
“THERE ARE ALMOST A MILLION PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO OWN SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN PAINTED BY MASTER GOTO”
Master goto has been painting for over 50 years and he learned the trade from his father when he was young. Dad was a toy maker, way back when Japanese toys were still made from celluloid instead of soft vinyl and of course he would paint all of his creations by hand. The toy work shop would be the environment where Goto grew up in, developing a sensibility for colours and a remarkable talent for mixing paint. It was clear that he would grow up to become a painter himself. After taking up various jobs on commission he found himself painting endless quantities of Godzillas, Mickey Mouses and other famous licensed characters and he still continues to do so fifty years later. It is easy to see that this man enjoys his work with heart and soul and his dedication is accompanied by a soft natural smile that never seems to leave his face.
We spend the afternoon chatting and laughing and thinking about what colours we would like to use for our next series of figures. Despite the roof being fixed, every once in a while a single drop of rain seeps through to hit me on the head. All the while, Master Goto continues his work smiling.
(all info lifted from UAMOU.com)
