An interview with Twelvedot: Designer Toy Awards 'Break Through Artist' of 2015!!!

"Project aftr." is the ironic evolutionary tale of frogs after the self-inflicted downfall of humankind. The man behind it, Hyunseung R, is part graphic designer, part designer toy genius, and all Planeteer. His graduation piece at Korea National University of Arts - the original 12"Apocalypse Frog -aims to generate awareness and discourse on the fragile plight and impending extinction of the amphibians.
I get to speak with Faye Kim, wife/marketing division/interpreter/seamstress/patron goddess of Twelevedot Studio, only because Twelvedot is an offline hermit hiding from the online world in one of the most wired countries on the planet!

Me: I get the deal with with frogs and apocalypse but let's run through it again for the uninitiated.

Faye: Frogs are one of the most fragile life forms on our planet as they need both clean water and land with ample vegetation to survive. As a key middle link in the ecosystem, the total extinction of frogs would result in a surge of pests (mosquitoes and rodents) and diseases, and ultimately lead to the downfall of humans. Yet we humans continue to catch frogs for food and pets while polluting and destroying their homes. "Project aftr." tells the story of frogs that survive the apocalypse of humans, by ironically evolving into a human-like form and walking on two feet. We wanted the world to open their eyes to the beauty of amphibians (most, especially Koreans think frogs are slimy and gross). Once we started researching the animals, we found that most were endangered and wished our frogs could help create awareness on the dangers of frog extinction.

Me: That's a heavy message which the first Apocalypse Frog conveys very well. The form traps a quiet forlornness and the impassive posture brings out the uncertainty of a post-apocalyptic world. It looks like something that walked out of the set of Prometheus. I am absolutely in love with the sculpt which is a narrative masterpiece. Apocalypse Frogs Boundary Issues 

Faye: The 12-inch "Apocalypse Frog" was an immediate hit among young toy collectors, but Twelvedot soon found that he would need to come up with something that could get his story across to the wider public. Hence the creation of "APO Frogs," a cuter, shorter version of the full-scale "Apocalypse Frog." To show at art toy fairs in Asia, Twelvedot created two 12-inch "Apocalypse Frogs" in shiny black (Versión Sombra) and sakura pink (Versión Flor de Cerezo), and smaller 5-inch "APO Frogs" in Sakura Pink, Kill Bill Yellow, and Matt Black. Both the full-scale and smaller frogs were well received at toy fairs, leading to the creation of Yellow and Purple Raincoat versions and Red and Gold Good Luck versions.


Me: So, you said something about making the story more accessible and it got me wondering if people reacted to the aesthetics or the narrative. Apocalypse Frog and APO frogs would have drawn different responses. What would Twelvedot have done anything differently if he could? How would the frogs evolve from this point?

Faye: The aesthetics of the cuter APO Frogs definitely got the attention of a wider crowd and we were ecstatic with the results. We love that the full-scale apocalypse Frog and the smaller APO Frog appeal to widely different demographics as it will give us the opportunity to get the story across to a wider public. Since the frogs seem to be getting the attention of people, we can now work on really getting the message out to help frogs struggling in nature. The boxes our frogs will be sold in carries messages on how important the magnificent creatures are to us and what would happen if they are wiped out, so we hope collectors would take the extra minute to look through the graphic designs and information in them. I am pretty sure Twelvedot is happy with how both frogs turned out and don’t think he would have changed them if given the chance to go back. Future frogs will likely aim at introducing a wider variety of shapes and colors. I hope we can show that frogs are not the slimy and noisy animals most think they are but beautiful, intriguing creatures.

Me: Describe the perfect art/designer toy to me.

Faye: For Twelvedot, it would be the sleek, crafted-by-the-master-artisan sculpture that stops you dead in your tracks, whether it be a frog, a superhero, fictional monster, or things on wheels. It's that one that you keep coming back to even while surrounded by millions of other toys at a huge convention, and the one that you just have to have even if it means spending an amount not easily understood by non-collectors and waiting forever to finally get the piece delivered in your hands. In my completely, 100%-biased view, the closest thing would be Twelvedot's sleek black Versión Sombra piece, seeing the way it stopped Japanese toy aficionados in their tracks when we first showed it in 2013. We continue to get requests to sell the piece but Twelvedot remains reluctant to part with the first pieces he made since he poured so much of his time and sweat into perfecting each curve and line. The understated but intricate details make the larger frogs hard to reproduce on a larger scale.
Me: What's the best part of the next thing Twelvedot is working on?

Faye: As with all of his pieces so far, the essence of Twelvedot's work is in the irony. The irony of a frog evolving into a human-like form to survive a human-induced apocalypse, the idea that one of the most fragile life forms on the planet could become an only survivor, the irony of a frog wearing a wetsuit or a raincoat to keep the moisture in opposed to the way we humans use it, the irony that an animal seen so slimy and gross that most city folk would squirm if it jumps on them could be made into a form that you would want to take home, and so on. That irony, and the demure sleek style typical of Twelvedot will likely remain present in all of his future work.

Twelvedot snagged the DTA2015 Best Breakout Artist Award and I say it's well-deserved! Congratulations! They are the nicest people around, always handy around conventions with Korean snacks, but it is not the reason why I love the frogs. You don't want to miss out on this year's edition of APO Frogs!

This is reproduced with permission. Read the full interview HERE.