Art Toys trend in Thailand
Continuing from Projects 2 and 3, I am interested in art and people’s social trends about art. Because of this concern, why is it important to be an artist who does what you like and succeeds? It’s hard to have someone to like your work. So, I have a question from an artist’s perspective: who wants to be successful…
- How can artists develop and implement strategies to achieve success while remaining true to their passion for art?
- How can artists effectively balance creative expression and commercial viability?
If talking about art trends at the moment, I would think of Art toys or Designer toys that are very popular. Whether it is an artist who always creates paintings, how is it in this situation? Those artists will definitely produce Art toys for people to buy. Therefore, I am interested in learning more about the art toy trend, especially in Thailand. Because I am a Thai person, I’ve recently seen a lot of news about the art toy situation. It’s clear to me that most Thai people between the ages of 17 and 40 are very interested in this trend. This is the area of interest in this project. And I won’t just find information on the internet. I plan to return to Thailand during Spring break, so this is a good opportunity for me to interview people onsite. I will focus on the target groups that like to collect art toys and artists who produce art toys.
Target Groups for Research
The research will concentrate on two primary groups:
1. Thai Art Toy Collectors (Aged 17 – 40):
- Location: I will seek out these individuals in places where Art toys are purchased, such as stores and exhibitions.
- Research Aim: To understand their fascination with art toys, exploring the underlying motivations and their perspectives on art’s evolving landscape.
2. Art Toy Creators:
- Location: I plan to attend the Thailand Toy Expo 2024, a pivotal gathering for global creators in the Art toy industry.
- Research Aim: To uncover the reasons behind artists’ decisions to create Art toys and examine the benefits and challenges within this industry from their viewpoint.
- Insight Goal: Artists will provide narratives about their experiences in the Art toy sector, offering valuable insights into industry trends and artist perspectives.
I started interviewing collectors both onsite and online. For onsite, I went to a shopping mall in Bangkok that sells only toys called Mega Plaza. I asked random people who bought art toys about…
Onsite questions
- Do you think art toy is art? Why?
- Why do you like to collect art toys?
Online questions
- What is art?
- Do you think art toy is art? Why?
- What makes art toys popular in Thailand?
- How do art toys impact today’s art?
- How do social media and online platforms play a part in the art toy trend in Thailand?
- What do the trend of art toys will be in the future?
- How does POP MART impact the art industry in Thailand?
In the past three years, Thais have become more and more interested in art. This can be seen from the increasing number of art exhibitions, and many people attend each exhibition. The first reason is that Thais are becoming increasingly interested in art. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people had to stay at home and could not go out for a long time. When things get better, people start to do something more relaxed and diversified, so people choose to be closer to art. Another reason is definitely the trend of art toys or designer toys in Thailand and Asia, which is very popular now.
An art toy is an art form designed by artists that can be made of various materials. The most popular materials are plastic and vinyl. Art toys were born in Hong Kong in the mid-1990s, and the idea of “art toys” became famous because of Michael Lau. He is often called the father of this art movement. The artist from Japan began to make special, limited-edition toys to produce vinyl. Therefore, there is a company in Japan called Medicom Toy, which makes these toys famous. They are the first to focus on creating and selling these small, special batches of cool toys designed by artists. These toys are not just ordinary toys. They began to be regarded as real art.
What is an art toy? Is it a toy? Is it art? There is no definite answer. Opinions are still divided. However, 34 people I interviewed are interested in “art toys” whether they think it is a work of art or not. All 34 people agree that it is a work of art because it is a design that needs to go through a thinking process and use creativity to make works. I asked the same question to 7 artists at the Thailand Toy Expo 2024 held in Bangkok, Thailand. Six artists think that an “art toy” is a work of art that has created great value, which makes people more accessible to art and, at the same time, provides artists with a new way for them to try to produce works.
I mentioned two artists who think art toys are works of art.
- Art of Parich (Thailand)
She said that her work was a god worshipped by people, but when people thought of the word “art toy”, people would regard it as a toy. The more she saw it as sacred. First, people are worried that this sacred thing can be used to make art toys. Therefore, she designed to integrate images into modern art so people can connect with them more easily. However, she mentioned that her works may not be regarded as art belonging to collectables but as works of art to worship gods.
- Fatlane (Thailand)
They said that their works are art, and they hoped to convey the stories of past and present events through art toys for people in this modern world to appreciate because it could make people more accessible and understanding.
Another artist thinks that art toys are not art.
- This is not a toy store (Australia)
He said that most of the art toys we see on the market now are not works of art; they are just designs, and anyone can design them. If you have money and want to make an art toy, you only need to hire someone to make a model and find a manufacturing factory. You hardly need to do any work or even participate in production. You just have an idea. If you want to make a cute cartoon, you can have an art toy. In fact, if you want to produce some art toys, you must know what you are doing and have the passion to do it. You need to make your art toy by your hand, which will make your art toy more meaningful.
So, why are art toys so popular now? What makes most Thais pay attention to art toys? One of the major influences is definitely POP MART from China, which produces and sells the world’s major art toys. In other words, the art toy industry has existed for a long time, but in Thailand, only a group of people are interested in and accumulate art toys. However, when POP MART launched an attractive sales strategy, it was obvious that the company could attract more people’s attention.
Sales strategy to promote the rapid growth of POP MART
- Collab cooperates with many famous artists to produce art toys that are only sold in POP MART.
- Inspired by the Japanese gashapon machine, the “blind box” sales concept excited people and made them want to buy it again and again. It added secret art toys to the blind box set so that people could enjoy buying the blind box more.
It is these ways that POP MART attracts people’s attention quickly. The rare item art toys are more expensive, making a group of people gather together to speculate, not just for their interest in art.
On September 20, 2023, POP MART Company opened its first store in Thailand. The special thing about opening this first branch is that the store will have limited edition art toys with only 140 pieces for sale, causing many people to buy products on the first day. But when the time came to receive the queue card, it turned out that there was a chaotic situation. People who were waiting rushed in until they stepped on each other and were injured. It became big news that showed Thai people’s obsession with Art toys during that time.
Some comments from the people I interviewed. About the popularity of Art toys in Thailand.
- Art toys are popular in Thailand because they are inexpensive collectables. Easily accessible. (23, Female, Thai)
- Beautiful, cute designs that reach people of all ages and art toys that people love. (22, Female, Thai)
- Trends created by influencers on social media make people know a lot. (23, Male, Thai)
- Art toy with an interesting story. Including production that used good materials and did the details well. (21, Female, Thai)
Some comments from the people I interviewed. About the influence that POP MART has on art in Thailand.
- Art toys that come from Pop Mart make Thai people more familiar with this kind of art. (25, Male, Thai)
- Pop Mart opened the market, especially if artists create works in many series and sell them in blind boxes. It motivates artists to create art. (36, Female, Thai)
- It may increase the value of art. Because people are interested in art and give more value to art. (28, Female, Thai)
- Create awareness about art in Thailand that art can make money. (29, Female, Thai)
Another interesting interview, the only Thai artist who has worked with POP MART, the owner of the work named Crybaby. She is a very well-known artist in the Art toy industry in Thailand and abroad. She is considered one of the artists who made most Thai people know about Art toys. In this interview, she said that the Art toys that she produced were all from her idea process. The design is detailed and beautiful. These processes are the elements used to create all art. Therefore, she considers her Art toy to be a work of art. Her collaboration with POP MART is considered a good thing. It makes more people know her work. It can also inspire other people. However, one thing she is concerned about is her work. Will people understand her work as she intended? She didn’t want to create a work just to sell. But she wants people to understand art in the work that she intended to do.
I had the opportunity to go to the POP MART store in Thailand. Even though almost six months have passed, it is still crowded with people. A pop-up opening to launch a new collection was also held, and many branches were also opened in Thailand.
These are pictures of the atmosphere at Thailand Toy Expo 2024, held in Thailand. It’s packed with people interested in Art toys and artists who make them worldwide. Most Art toy shops come from China, which has been popular with Art toys for a long time. It is also the country of origin of POP MART.
Art toys are trendy right now. Many artists have turned to producing art toys and incurring many expenses in making their pieces. But will the art toy industry still be as popular in the future? Because social trends often come and go.
Some comments from the people I interviewed. About the popularity of Art toys in Thailand in the future.
- It will continue to grow. Maybe more people will do it because it’s interesting and creates income. (23, Female, Thai)
- Suppose the trend starts to run out. I think sales will decrease, but not that much. It has become a regular toy that people buy for each other or their children because the price is still considered cheap compared to the quality. (25, Male, Thai)
- It is unlikely to be as popular as it was in past years. But I believe that there are still people who collect them. People may collect more limited editions. (24, Female, Thai)
- They will likely remain popular for a while. There may also be more art toys that Thai people produce themselves. And I think that the market price should drop to a reasonable point, not to be more expensive than it is now. (26, Female, Thai)
- The trend will decrease. However, it inspires Thai artists to develop and bring their art into the world market. (29, Female, Thai)
In the art industry, artists who want to be successful must produce works that follow the trend. However, not all artists who follow trends are successful. So, the question arises:
- How can the current popularity of Art Toys act as a lens to examine broader social and economic trends?
- What does this tell us about contemporary culture and consumer behaviour in the art industry?
- How can the current trend of popular Art Toys help people learn to appreciate the art behind them instead of just seeing them as products to buy?
- Do people collect art toys because they appreciate art, or is it just a trend?
On the other hand, the art toy trend is so popular that it is causing more demand in the market. Therefore, POP MART needs to increase production capacity. This can be called the marketing cycle of Art Toys to increase sales for the company and increase the value of the company’s market size, as shown in the pictures.
In addition to increasing sales for the company, it also affects the environment. The materials for producing one Art toy consist of…
- Vinyl, which comes from PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), is plastic.
- ABS (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene) is plastic
- PU (polyurethane) is used to produce moulds and shaping components.
One Art toy box consists of…
- Paper box
- Paper card
- PP plastic bag
- Silica gel bag
It can be seen that one box of Art toys uses plastic and creates a lot of pollution. Even though some Art toy characters hardly use plastic packaging at all. But it’s different from most Art toys like this. For example, an Art toy product that is very popular now is the Labubu macaron keychain, which uses mostly plastic packaging. And imagine that this product is popular. People are overwhelmingly looking to buy it. It is sold at a high price. Therefore, the company must increase production capacity to meet people’s needs. Thus, this example can be considered a trend that clearly pollutes the world.
And in production, it’s not that the company only produces a small amount. They are produced in large quantities, mass production, and when the demand in the market is higher. Companies create even more pollution by increasing production rates. Buying this type of art can be considered as creating pollution and destroying our world’s environment. The current trend of art toys is like fast fashion, which pollutes the earth. Therefore, the more people like and buy art toys, the more it will impact the world’s environment. If they had known this story, would they still have bought art toys?
I know that we can’t tell people to stop buying art toys, but how can we change something about that to improve the environment?