Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
Tell Me a Story 9 – Driving Ms Watanabe Yesterday, I drove a 71 year old Japanese woman around West LA. She was lost. After finishing dinner at Don Chuy’s, a Mexican restaurant, the waiter asked if we spoke Japanese. A woman needed help. She spoke politely and explained that she went for a walk but couldn’t find her way back. She had no money, no phone, no number and no address. She seemed to be in good spirits despite walking for about 40 minutes. She remembered that the apartment was across from a school that was decent sized with single story buildings. The school educated kids up to middle school. There were trees and it was near a moderate sized street. She didn’t cross under a bridge or walk over a freeway and there was a “super” nearby – meaning a market. I’ve seen The Fugitive and thought of the Tommy Lee Jones line: “Our fugitive has been on the run for ninety minutes. Average foot speed over uneven ground barring injuries is 4 miles-per-hour. That gives us a radius of six miles.” My guest was no Richard Kimble, but she walked for 40 minutes at 2-3 miles an hour on flat land. Mostly likely she went at the slower pace, but the radius could be up to two miles. Looking at Google Maps, there’s about 10 schools. I offered her “shotgun” and drove. We passed the closest elementary, middle, private and high school without any luck. It was beginning to get dark. I was sure that it would be one of the first few schools. After a half hour, the radius got larger. The schools seemed to be ones that didn’t fit her description, but her being in LA for just 24 hours, what could she know? I then asked for her daughter’s name which was a Japanese one that I’ve never heard before. I repeated it often and asked where she works and any other details that could help find her. No luck. I even posted it on my social networks, thinking maybe someone knows her since she works in nearby Santa Monica. It soon passed an hour of driving and we ran out of schools. I was beginning to think maybe it wasn’t a school, but a library or perhaps a community center. She had a photo on her camera of what looks like the back of an apartment building, an alley and a fence which belonged to the school. I zoomed in and could see nothing. I placed a call to an LAPD friend, Bob who suggested we stop at Pacific Division so they could check for a missing persons report. If the daughter called it in, they’d know about it. I wrote down the name of the daughter and my lost guest filled out the DOBs as well as her own name on the same sheet. The check by the officer yielded nothing. He and a colleague looked at the photo but weren’t sure....
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Tell Me a Story 9 – Driving Ms Watanabe Yesterday, I drove a 71 year old Japanese woman around West LA. She was lost. After finishing dinner at Don Chuy’s, a Mexican restaurant, the waiter asked if we spoke Japanese. A woman needed help. She spoke politely and explained that she went for a walk but couldn’t find her way back. She had no money, no phone, no number and no address. She seemed to be in good spirits despite walking for about 40 minutes. She remembered that the apartment was across from a school that was decent sized with single story buildings. The school educated kids up to middle school. There were trees and it was near a moderate sized street. She didn’t cross under a bridge or walk over a freeway and there was a “super” nearby – meaning a market. I’ve seen The Fugitive and thought of the Tommy Lee Jones line: “Our fugitive has been on the run for ninety minutes. Average foot speed over uneven ground barring injuries is 4 miles-per-hour. That gives us a radius of six miles.” My guest was no Richard Kimble, but she walked for 40 minutes at 2-3 miles an hour on flat land. Mostly likely she went at the slower pace, but the radius could be up to two miles. Looking at Google Maps, there’s about 10 schools. I offered her “shotgun” and drove. We passed the closest elementary, middle, private and high school without any luck. It was beginning to get dark. I was sure that it would be one of the first few schools. After a half hour, the radius got larger. The schools seemed to be ones that didn’t fit her description, but her being in LA for just 24 hours, what could she know? I then asked for her daughter’s name which was a Japanese one that I’ve never heard before. I repeated it often and asked where she works and any other details that could help find her. No luck. I even posted it on my social networks, thinking maybe someone knows her since she works in nearby Santa Monica. It soon passed an hour of driving and we ran out of schools. I was beginning to think maybe it wasn’t a school, but a library or perhaps a community center. She had a photo on her camera of what looks like the back of an apartment building, an alley and a fence which belonged to the school. I zoomed in and could see nothing. I placed a call to an LAPD friend, Bob who suggested we stop at Pacific Division so they could check for a missing persons report. If the daughter called it in, they’d know about it. I wrote down the name of the daughter and my lost guest filled out the DOBs as well as her own name on the same sheet. The check by the officer yielded nothing. He and a colleague looked at the photo but weren’t sure....
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Tell Me A Story 4: kozyndan from 2001 to now The first day kozyndan walked into Giant Robot, they were students at Cal State Fullerton. This was perhaps in 2001, soon after the store opened. The couple led by the more talkative Dan, showed me a portfolio of drawings including a panoramic rendition of their apartment. We probably discussed their process since I doubt I knew what else to talk about, but their talent was undeniable. The drawing style wasn’t perfect contours, it had some artistic license. The color choices took the image to new places. It’s obvious their apartment wasn’t many shades of pink. A week or so later, they came to shoot photos at the Giant Robot Store for a new panoramic and I had no idea that I’d be included. I’m wearing an old jersey shirt that says “Oxnard” which I picked up at the Buddhist Temple yard sale. I’m scratching my head in some kind of nervousness. It’s me. The image captures the early look of the Giant Robot Store along with robots. I see items by Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara and Groovisions. I see the Superflat banner and books that are now out of print and pricey. The “ladders” that became the front display are leaning against the wall behind me. Not too long after their completed image, I remember Kozy walking in and saying, “it’s different” perhaps in some kind of disappointment. Within a year, we held a kozyndan exhibition at the shop. What was art like in 2002? Unlike these days at least in Los Angeles, there weren’t multiple exhibitions by younger artists every weekend. Most people in a youth demographic weren’t looking to purchase art, it was something relatively new. Art fans didn’t exist like they do today. On that day, people showed up and comfortably adopted art. It was something new to us. 11 years later, we’re exhibiting kozyndan again. In between time, I’ve shown kozyndan in various capacities while our lives and careers grew on separate trajectories. Now, kozyndan creates art and illustrations so they can travel the world. The GR shops continue to grow pop culture and art. If kozy says, “it’s different”, I’d like to think although “it” looks different, we’re the same kids from 2001 – our futures still mysterious and hopefully intertwined. I stitched together images. This isn’t quite how it looks as a whole, but you get the idea.
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Tell Me A Story 4: kozyndan from 2001 to now The first day kozyndan walked into Giant Robot, they were students at Cal State Fullerton. This was perhaps in 2001, soon after the store opened. The couple led by the more talkative Dan, showed me a portfolio of drawings including a panoramic rendition of their apartment. We probably discussed their process since I doubt I knew what else to talk about, but their talent was undeniable. The drawing style wasn’t perfect contours, it had some artistic license. The color choices took the image to new places. It’s obvious their apartment wasn’t many shades of pink. A week or so later, they came to shoot photos at the Giant Robot Store for a new panoramic and I had no idea that I’d be included. I’m wearing an old jersey shirt that says “Oxnard” which I picked up at the Buddhist Temple yard sale. I’m scratching my head in some kind of nervousness. It’s me. The image captures the early look of the Giant Robot Store along with robots. I see items by Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara and Groovisions. I see the Superflat banner and books that are now out of print and pricey. The “ladders” that became the front display are leaning against the wall behind me. Not too long after their completed image, I remember Kozy walking in and saying, “it’s different” perhaps in some kind of disappointment. Within a year, we held a kozyndan exhibition at the shop. What was art like in 2002? Unlike these days at least in Los Angeles, there weren’t multiple exhibitions by younger artists every weekend. Most people in a youth demographic weren’t looking to purchase art, it was something relatively new. Art fans didn’t exist like they do today. On that day, people showed up and comfortably adopted art. It was something new to us. 11 years later, we’re exhibiting kozyndan again. In between time, I’ve shown kozyndan in various capacities while our lives and careers grew on separate trajectories. Now, kozyndan creates art and illustrations so they can travel the world. The GR shops continue to grow pop culture and art. If kozy says, “it’s different”, I’d like to think although “it” looks different, we’re the same kids from 2001 – our futures still mysterious and hopefully intertwined. I stitched together images. This isn’t quite how it looks as a whole, but you get the idea.
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Tell Me a Story 3: Return to Disneyland I haven’t stepped foot into Disneyland in nearly two decades. It’s been so long that California Adventures, Downtown Disney and a couple of giant parking structures didn’t exist. I wasn’t a tiny kid, but I’ve pretty much forgotten about it. If you were with me, I’d like to ask, “who else was there?” “was it someone’s birthday?” and perhaps, “did I have fun?” Surely, it was another era in my life when I wanted to ride the fastest, largest, and free-falling-est and I wasn’t a fan of most of the Disney cast. On Sunday, an email inviting me to Disneyland appeared in my inbox, and Monday I was among tens of thousands on a 90+ degree Labor Day. The theme park is now filled with choices before you walk in. California Adventure, a behemoth sister park and Downtown Disney loom in a newb’s curiosity. In a 12 hour span, you couldn’t possibly get on more than 6 rides between two meals. I suppose the idea is to offer something so huge that you’d need at least two or three days to visit all. Families travel the world to be here and some visit like it’s a mall. It turns out, a lot of folks I know have an annual pass. They visit more than once a month and perhaps ride the same rides and eat at the same food. The scene doesn’t change but they keep coming back. If I asked why, their answers would be something simple: “I like it.” The question would then turn on me, “why don’t you have one?” The sun slowly moved with much of the time spent standing in lines. We rode Soarin’ Over California and viewed our State. Space Mountain got darker and Star Tours now includes Jar Jar. It soon became evening and then night. The cool air, slightly thinned crowd and lights gave Disneyland a new look and feel. Walking became easier, options to go here or there met seamless decisions and the fried chicken tasted healthy. After Tinkerbell soared across the Magic Castle, the orchestration of music and fireworks began and everyone froze. Families grouped together, couples hand hands or each other and friends drifted into memories. It’s the nightly crescendo of the Disneyland production. I peeked at my friends – the annual pass holders who’ve seen this a bunch, and they were glued to the sky. It’s a Small World is graphically amazing.
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