From vinyL figures to capsule toys, an extraordinary Look atthe coolest and most coveted coLLectibLe toys being produced today.

Toys are no Longer for children onLy; they are at the heart of a new movement beingspurred on by graphic artists, graffiti styLists, boutique fashion LabeLs, iLLustrators, andpainters from Hong Hong to New York. There may be no other medium today as vibrant anddiverse as the Art Toy movement, with its cuLturaL mashing of academic and street, highand Low, art and commerce.

In the summer of 2001 I was handed a 6-inch vinyl toy created by Hong Kong artist Eric So. It featured a kid in muted blue (see top of p. 160),decked out in white and red sneakers, a puffy down jacket, backpack, and baseball cap. This little toy was all attitude, dressed in its fresh gear with an expression that was simultaneously play-ful and streetwise. I'd never seen anything like it before and wondered exactly what it was I was holding: a cool, arty little icon combining ele-ments of action figures I loved as a kid with a grown-up sense of style. I wanted to see more.