2
One of the big things at Design
Festa is new “characters.” Lots of people think they can make it big by coming
up with the next gotta-have-it character, like Hello Kitty. Most of them fall
far, far short of that mark, but that’s okay. What they do come up with falls
into one of several categories: lame, cool, or
WTF?!?
In this last category, you’ll
find Nikumaan:
Nikumaan
is the cute little bread that looks delicious but doesn’t want to be eaten. But
really, can you blame him? I mean, people speak up for the rights of cows and
chickens not to be eaten – but who speaks for the
breads?!?
Nobody. That’s why
they must speak for
themselves:
I
really dug the postcards (but only enough to snap a photo instead of buying
them).
(Slight
aside: Postcards seem to be the medium of
choice for a lot of the artists. I guess I can see why – low cost, more product
per sheet, easier to transport than posters and other larger media – but not
many people have a way to show them off if they buy a whole bunch of
them.)
I like how the first two are
trying to save themselves, then the last one’s all pissed off at not even being
considered worth eating. Damn,
bread! You’re home free and you’re gonna go
and get yourself killed out of stupidity? That’s like a klansman walking through
Harlem yelling, “who thinks they can kick my ass?” in full KKK
regalia.
There were more than
postcards available for the serious Nikumaan
fan:
Clay
Nikumaan figures, Nikumaan stamps and buttons – even fancy art-type prints.
Clearly Nikumaan has developed a bit of a following and has moved beyond the
“postcards-only” stage. And good on him! Something this weird needs to be
celebrated.
Coming up in Design Festa:
Part 3 – weird stuff that
doesn’t
need to be celebrated. Stay tuned!
^.^