Ethan Windy "Toyz"
There’s something about summer weather finally kicking in that always makes you yearn to be a kid again. Summer vacation, running around outside like a nutjob, and more importantly having all day to play with your toys. So in May 2019 we decided to scratch that nostalgia itch by inviting Ethan Windy out for a 2 day class and a show on May 18th. The result was an awesome class and show called ‘Toyz’
The class was a 2 day workshop from the man himself as well as a guest teacher, fellow artist and good friend, Coyle. Windy and Coyle covered everything from sketching out design concepts to the painstaking necessity of balance. The class result was a crash test dummy that Windy worked incredibly hard on to show his students how to get it stand up just right.
Windy is a very charismatic and interactive guy. Even during the demo, he treated the spectators more like a larger class than an audience. He explained his every move and called back to techniques that he had taught his students in creating an upside down head shot glass covered in the iconic face sculpting that he is known for.
With the demo in full swing, food was hitting the table for the VIP guests. The theme was Fair Food so Sweet Baby Haze whipped up some classics like sliders (beef and veggie), corn dogs, macaroni and cheese, street corn (which was unreal), fried pickles, fried oreos and a popcorn machine. People were grabbing food in between being mesmerized by the claw machine that Windy brought. Singles, fives, 10’s and 20’s were being pumped into the machine as people tried to score sculpted work, t-shirts and a ton of other prizes.
At about 6:30pm, the sun finally tucked itself back behind the trees so it wasn’t blinding everyone in the gallery. That’s when we opened the doors and let the crowd stream in to put their eyes on the art. It was really awesome to see how each individual person connected with the array of pieces in Windy’s display. Whether it be the collaborated work on display (Featuring the talents of Akio, Disk, Coyle, BMFT, Brandon Martin, Murdok, and Ski Mask) or his solo stand alone pieces including a towering ‘Sid’ from the movie Toy Story (which was also a functional tube), there was something for each age group in attendance. Ultimately, what is so magical about Ethan Windy’s work is that it’s pure pop culture reference with an aspect of innocent nostalgia that makes each and every person unable to take their eyes away from it.
Between the class and the show, it was an incredible couple of days (and really late nights). To commemorate the weekend, Windy, Coyle, and Ben Danger (AKA The Bad Boy Club) tagged the wall in the studio, leaving their mark on Stoked forever.
