Phantom Friends

These are my Phantom Friends. I've been working on this project for a few months now. They are two inches tall and made out of molded plastic. Each colorway will be a limited run of only ten. More colors to come, along with other sculpts. I will update with photos of packaging later!

Hey everyone!

Just sending out this update to let you know that I will be part of a group art show in about a month. It is scheduled for
Saturday, March 28th, from 7:00pm - 10:00pm. http://eventful.com/torrance/events/meet-my-moji-/E0-001-019359512-6

At the grand opening of the show I will have:

• The debut my new line of Phantom Friends designer toys in limited edition runs.
  
• Original framed artwork.
• Limited edition prints suitable for framing.
• Dozens of different types of booklets. (You would never think saving three men from a burning car, ghost stories, cockroaches, Wheel of Fortune, lost loves, chance encounters, ninjas, sunburns and surviving in L.A. would have anything in common, but they do!)

The event is free, so please come and see the art, enjoy the refreshments and participate in the awesome raffle! There will be lots and lots of items for sale from all of the artists. (Just in case you decide to bring a Phantom Friend home with you. )

Save the date! It would mean SO MUCH to me to see you there! Here are the details:

Come to the MEET MY MOJI exhibit hosted by Pop Monster!
Enjoy the refreshments, original works for sale, raffle for great prizes, and more!

MEET MY MOJI
Saturday March 28, 2009
A group exhibition showcasing artwork exemplifying the pop art Japanese toy market. Each of the artists has created an original character or "Moji" in each one's own unique style.

Artists include:
Caro
Jenikah
Tuan Vu Tran
Aaron Little
Melissa Martyn

Location:
Pop Monster
24416 Censhaw Blvd. #3
Torrance, CA 90505

By the way, 10% of all profits go towards our local charities! If that doesn't make you run to the show this very instant, I don't know what will (Don't run to the show until March 28th, though).

Go ahead and message me with any questions or comments. I'd love to hear from you. Feel free to forward this information to all your friends as well! See you there!!!

-Tuan Vu Tran

Competition Update

Even though I haven't been able to go to Pop Monster to check my progress in the Munny competition, my friend Jenikah dropped by today and sent me a cell phone photo. She told me that I was in the top five!

Steam Bot Zero SB-001 with Polar Button Pilot

Here are some photos of my Steam Bot Zero SB-001 with Polar Button Pilot. This is my first attempt at customizing a Munny and I spent about five frantic days on it. I saw a couple pieces from the other artists in the competition and they were quite good. Hopefully I do okay.

Meet My Moji Group Show at Pop Monster

Now that I have finished my Munny for the competition (progress photos in the next entry), I can actually focus on the Meet My Moji group show. The show will have five artists…Caro, Jenikah, Aaron Little, Melissa Martyn, and I. It is scheduled for Saturday, March 28 from 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. We are looking into refreshments, prizes for raffles, and a live DJ, so it should be a fun show.

I will debut my Phantom Friends toys that I have been working on for the past few months. They will be made out of molded plastic in different colorways, with each color run limited to only ten. I’m also having new work at the show, as well as prints and booklets. Don’t miss it!

MEET MY MOJI!!

Saturday March 28, 2009
(Show will exhibit from March 28 through April 11)
7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.

24416 Crenshaw Blvd
Torrance, CA 90505
(310)325-8686
www.myspace.com/popmonster1

A group exhibition showcasing artwork exemplifying the pop art Japanese toy market. Each of the artists has created an original character or “MOJI” in each one’s own unique style.

First Blog

I want to briefly introduce myself and touch upon some projects that I am currently working on. My name is Tuan Vu Tran. I went to California State University, Fullerton with a double major in Graphic Design and Illustration. Let's see...I don't know what else to say about myself, so let me just post a short bio that I wrote about myself to be featured in an email blast for my upcoming show at Pop Monster.

Tuan Vu Tran
Tuan constantly reminds himself not to take life too seriously. He is passionately committed to a zine series he embarked upon in college, which consists of 100 experimental handmade booklets, varying in style, content, execution, size and materials. You would never think saving three men from a burning car, ghost stories, cockroaches, Wheel of Fortune, lost loves, chance encounters, ninjas, sunburns and surviving in L.A. would have anything in common, but they do! All these topics and more can be found in the 100 Shot Zine Project. When he has any free time, Tuan also enjoys graphic design, illustration, photography, toy design, and other similar things.

It's too bad the site isn't ready to go live yet. Hopefully I can get that done within the week.

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Pop Monster to participate in a group show. My girlfriend had pointed out the shop to me, and so my friend and I approached the owner to ask for exhibition posibilities. Well, we got our show. It includes four other artists, and we have been meeting to discuss all the necessary details. I will go into more detail and post up the postcard flyers within the next few days. So while all of this was going on, Pop Monster decided to host a custom Munny competition. For those that don't know, Munnys are blank Vinyl figurines that are used as a 3D blank canvas of sorts. Of course I thought it would be fun at the time, since I had never worked on a custom Munny before, or any vinyl toy for that matter. I had a little over a week to do it. I stressed over it the first few days. What if I messed up? What if I hadn't adapted to the medium in time and my results were horrible? The Munny had been stamped in the spirit of fairness to ensure that everyone had the same time constraints, so that no one could use a Munny that they had been working on for the last year. Because of this, if I messed up, it wasn't as if I could get a "do-over". To make a long story short, I just jumped into the project today, and I havent looked back. I must admit, a lot of it has been trial and error, but everything has been going smoothly so far. I will post photos in a later entry. Wish me luck!