The Urban Paper show opening Sept. 7th at Café Pause in Ikebukuro is the latest stop of an international tour of paper toys first published in the book, Urban Paper. Tour stops have included Los Angles and Arnhem, the Netherlands and after Tokyo, the show will re-open in Rome.
Paper toys have been around for almost as long as paper itself, but what’s new is that paper toys have recently become a medium of choice for young designers. Because paper is cheap, light and recyclable it has become a populist alternative for artists who previously might have released their toys as collectible vinyl figures. Many of the Urban Paper designers make their toys freely available for download on the Web and anyone with access to a printer can easily make and enjoy their very own paper toy. Urban Paper is the first book that collects designs from 26 of these international artists, printed on heavy stock, along with an included DVD of extra materials, that also gives readers designs and ideas on how to make their own paper toys creations.
At the Urban Paper show at Cafe Pause, new paper toys, designed exclusively for the Tokyo stop will be on display, along with posters, postcards and other material. Flat packs of the toys will also be on sale.
The show is being organized by Josh McKible, one of the artists in the book. Josh McKible is a Tokyo based illustrator and the creator of the popular NaniBird series of paper toys, which can be downloaded for free at his web site: www.nanibird.com
The show runs from September 7th till the 20th.
Cafe Pause info: Opening hours
From 12:00 to 23:00
sundays closing at 22:00, holidays closing at 22:00
Maps: Google Maps
Access: 5 minutes walk from Seibu East exit at Ikebukuro station.
Address: 2-14-12 Minami-Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku, Tokyo 171-0022 Phone: 03-5950-6117 Fax: 03-5950-6180
Website: www.nanibird.com, Café Pause
