We are delighted to get the chance to connect with Scottish artist Lisa Rae Hansen / iBreakToys. Below we chatted about everything from her studies and travels to her musical favorites and passion for creating toys. Oh, and a few surprises! She's got that unique blend of sci-fi, toys and rock n' roll!
Q: Hey there Lisa! How are you doing?
A: Good thank you, thanks for having me! Q: Being someone who grew up in the 80's I was immediately drawn to your aesthetic of changing up some well known characters from Star Wars, but I know you do so much more as well. I want to commend you on your conceptual fusion of rock and sci-fi. How did you start designing toys and where was this all taking place? A: Thank you! I have always had a deep rooted love of toys and all things otherworldly as well as popular culture. I grew up in the 80's too, my world was Star Wars, He-man, Garfield, Action Man. Saturdays were morning cartoons and a trip to the toy shop in the afternoon to spend my pocket money. I was always drawing and making characters as a kid and I never shook that need to create creatures, it has stayed with me throughout my life. The need to daydream and imagine something fun and colourful. I remember wishing as a kid that i could live in a cartoon or a movie. I wanted to do nothing other than go to art college to make "stuff", it was just where i knew I was going to go. I was at college from 1995-2000 and was making figurative work and started collecting vinyl toys throughout that period. This was a road I was always going to go down. Not necessarily specifically toys but toy like figures for sure.
Q: So, once you got to art school what were your influences and how has your work changed since then? Do you consider yourself a sculptor?
A: I studied jewellery and silversmithing at Edinburgh College of Art. My late father was my art teacher at high school and he studied jewellery and silversmithing at art college too and introduced me to design work. He always told me jewellery was just sculpture in miniature. I was drawn to jewellery because of the 3d sculptural aspect and functionality of it and i very much enjoyed constructing forms and problem solving. But I never shook the need to create characters. At college I was very influenced by abstract artists like the sculptural work of Joan Miro and I had begun collecting Amos toys and Tim Burton Oyster Boy figures. I found myself steering away from the restrictions of metals so that I could scale up and introduce colour and looser forms with mixed media, including plastics and resins, wood and enamel. I made abstract colourful creatures that had hidden wearable jewelery elements in them.
My idea was you had a functional sculpture which you could take parts off and wear, at the end of the day they go back on to complete the sculpture instead of in a drawer. I also I used automata, bringing some sculptures to life with motorised elements. For example one piece winked at the viewer which was set on a random timer. Another off shoot of my work at college was collecting inanimate found objects for example broken vacuum cleaner parts and creating creature sculptures or photomontage paintings from them (Publisher: reminds me of Joseph Cornell). Customising junk basically! It might have resembled a head and I would paint it to enhance that and add a body in a certain pose to capture the feel of the character. Yes I am one of these people that sees faces in man made things like light switches etc. But no I don't see ghosts...But i do see characters everywhere.
Since then my work has changed through necessity. Access to my larger workshop for wood carving, enameling and soldering etc became difficult when my first daughter came along. I had to tailor my materials to be able to work from home. So I scaled down and simplified things to just sculpting smaller characters. I still use mixed media but mainly 2 part epoxy resin and I got into toy customising around this time also. Basically I could work from home when the kids were sleeping and my husband was on shift. (He makes whisky)
Q: Sounds tasty. You have a punk rock x hip-hop side, no? What are you listening to these days?
A: I love the punk rock hip hop culture. On my 10th birthday I got my first ever 45 vinyl record The Beastie Boys, Fight for your right.. I LOVED that song. They are still one of my all time favourite bands. It's just funny cause that might imply that i was a wild child but I was a very quiet kid. But that urban culture has always appealed to me. My love of sneakers started as soon as my feet grew enough to be able to wear proper sneakers. There was a holy grail pair that my older siblings had worn and I remember waiting patiently for them to grow out of them and my feet to grow enough to fit them. As far as music goes, my ears are dominated by my family's choices! My husband is into the hip hop and folk music, my 9 and 5 year olds have discovered Kidz Bop. I myself have a very eclectic taste in music but I will probably always be an indie kid at heart. Currently I have the Verve on repeat, that is when i get a turn!
Q: Personally I really got into the Babycakes figures, they had a great urban/street feel. I definitely need to track one of those down for my signature collection. What have been your favorite figures to date? Perhaps something you have felt were a success and why?
A: I have a soft spot for my Babycakes figures. I love the Cavey collabs I did with A Little Stranger, I'd love to make some more of those. That was how Babycakes was born, as part of a custom for the Cavey show where I created her to wear the Cavey as a backpack.
I also really enjoy working on someone else's character and recreating it. My recent favourites to work on have been Moonfox by Sergey Safonov and Kidzilla by Yoii x Wetworks (Publisher: Love what those two are doing these days!). Generally when I do a custom I very consciously try to keep the essence of the original character but give it a new twist. It's very fun when you are sent a figure to work on and you first have it in hand. I turn it all around while it's still fresh in my eye to see what jumps out at me and then put pencil to paper to blast out some quick ideas.
The Heavy Metal Wookies have been a fun success. They have gained a lot of love. I know people bash bootlegs, especially Star Wars ones as the market is saturated. But I just get a kick out of these ones and I feel my heart was in the right place with my reasons for making them. I also have a ton of characters in my sketchbooks that I need to make.
Q: I say, bring it on! Switching gears a lil to molds and finished products. Rotocast, Soft Vinyl, ABS, Resin....how does an artist choose what's best for the final result of a toy concept?
A. I'm no toy producer, so my knowledge is limited but I imagine it depends on scale of the figure, your budget and production numbers. Personally I can't afford to have toys produced, so I need to be able to make my characters myself which is why I use resin. Resin suits me as I like to make small numbers to keep releases pretty limited and also so i do not get bored. I like to move on to the next thing. Also this gives me full control of every aspect of production and I can change my mind on any details as I go along.
Q: You trained as a jeweler. Are you still creating wearables?
A: No, but I have always planned to pull wearables back into my character work and it is in my sights soon. Initially I have my eye on Babycakes debuting some jewellery elements so watch this space...
Q: Speaking of which, I don't know if you noticed but I've recently gotten into these wildly thoughtful enamel lapel pins. Have you made any?
A: I haven't made any but I think they are great. I would love to do a Heavy Metal Wookie pin! I am a huge fan of the mash up ones, I especially love Tattoo Dave's pin creations.
Q: I'll have to look him up. A normal day in the studio for you. What tool/s are the ultimate essentials?
A: A normal day in my studio is working around the kids schedules. However I have just started a new normal of 9-3 as my youngest has just started school. This means I do not have to burn the midnight oil now to meet deadlines! It is a new routine for me. My main studio is a little room in my house where I do all my sculpting and painting. (I have an outdoor workshop for all the smelly resin and spray painting and any larger scale work.) In my room I have a big table with everything around me at arms reach as I am lazy! Essential tools would include my favourite two scalpels, a variety of files, some wooden sculpting tools and a trusty tooth pick. Wet sanding paper and a tub of water and an old dish towel are always on hand. And a sketchbook as I always draw characters so I am working from my 2d vision to recreate in 3d.
I like a stream of Netflix, podcasts or music in the background. I'm really enjoying Marsham's Toy Hour at the moment and I never get bored of Toybreak. Listening to people talking about toys while making toys isn't too much is it?!
Q: Have you traveled to any toy conventions recently? Any favorite places to visit?
A: I live in the north of Scotland, so don't travel a whole lot to shows. I always love to visit Edinburgh where I went to art college and I fill up on a bit of culture there. I exhibit at Toycon in London every April. Designer Con, Nycc, etc some day...some day...
Q: You seem to have your own, clean, minimal sense of style. How does that come into play in your own work and/or when you have customized original sculpts by other artists?
A: I think its just how my brain works, my mind doesn't cope with over complex forms. I like simplicity and for me the form is the dominant element first and foremost. Then comes colour, graphics and decoration. I am a perfectionist when it comes to the details. Also I tend to collect toys and objects that are simple clean minimal shapes. That is what I am drawn to generally. I like clean forms, sharp lines, limited colour palette.
Q: You are involved in the upcoming Clutter Magazine/Kidrobot Dunny Show. What can we expect?
A: Yes! This was awesome to work on a 5 inch Dunny. I've not done an enormous amount of dunnys in the past but I do really like working on the dunny form. The change in scale is a lot more fun with much more scope to work on. I have gone down my "Beaufighter" WW2 aviation theme with a bright and colouful twist. It is called "Dunny's Revenge" an aircraft inspired creature heading out on a rampage of vengeance. (Sneak Peek below)
Q: Instead of your name you are aka I Break Toys. Where did that come from?
A: I do also go by Lisa Rae Hansen but introduced I Break Toys to separate myself a little from my past as a jeweler and I also thought it would be more ambiguous and fun. It came from customising figures, as i literally do break them up and then rebuild them.
Q: Pep talk time. Any words of inspiring advice to burgeoning young artists out there trying to realize their creative vision?
A: At the end of the day when you are a creative you are creating for yourself. Make what makes you happy, what challenges you and what fulfills you. Just tap into your passion and people will believe in it if you believe in it. Always strive to be better. Don't take yourself too seriously. Be polite.
Q: Can you share any upcoming figures we can expect to see on the horizon this Fall/Winter? Any events planned that should whet our appetite?
A: I'm going to have a little bootleg action with DKE Toys at Designer Con, 20 Metal Marios will be winging their way over the pond in an OG colourway in November.
Q: That was a nice lil' scoop, thank you for that and for the exquisite chat, you made my day. Anything else to add that we have been remiss to ask?
A: I think I've rambled enough!
CHECK OUT: iBreakToys + Lisa Rae Hansen (Instagram)