The Andrew Yang Collection: Part 2

By Chris Spearman on Jul 20, 2016

Welcome back!

If you haven’t read the first part of the interview and why Sideshow is speaking with Andrew and Daniel of the AY Collective, you can check it out here!

And now, the end of the interview!

How are your soft figure collectibles unique compared with traditional collectible dolls and statues?

A: When I initially created my first dolls—I really made the kind of ‘fashion rag doll’ I would have loved playing with as a kid. Beautiful, long limbed, with hair and delicate expressions. I was also coming off five years of working with luxury fabrics in the fashion industry so having a tactile doll collection was really important to me—you wear a luxury garment, so you should play with a luxury doll. We create them much like we would create a clothing collection or style an editorial for a magazine. Their bodies are made of cotton muslin, the faces are hand drawn and colored, we love to play with the textures and materials, all of their clothes are hand sewn.

D: We really want them to be played with, we like adding the little details and tiny accessories that make you explore them, they can live on a shelf if you like, but we prefer if they just live with you.

What is your creative development process?

A: It always starts as a conversation, and then I do some loose fashion sketches (some of that exploration ended up on the display for comic con) and gather my references. Then we discuss textures and details and direction. Danny and I both have VERY strong opinions about this— I draw from my experience actually making the dolls and he is very tuned into the history and every iteration of the character– but it often means we end up with a great combination of choices that we could have only arrived at as a team.

Once we have that, we begin the hunt for materials. Are we creating a custom print? Dying a fabric to get that perfect pantone? One of the things we have to constantly solve for is scale—what often works on people won’t work on dolls—but this means we can also take a lot of fun liberties—like our Bruce Timm Harley’s Pearl ‘pom poms’.

D: With this collection we have a responsibility to classics. We really cherish these characters so we went back and explored many iterations. We found some amazing DC color guides from the early 80’s and tried to echo some of those colors, reaching to the 60’s show and exploring slight costume and color variations, like with Robin, we gave him a semi perforated tunic and boot to hint to actual body armor (after all he’s throwing punches and judo chops) With the Gotham girls, we played with satins and texture, metallic detailing, hand sequin netting and silk foliage. We also had the gift of getting hands on with the Suicide Squad costumes. We really wanted to take Harley to the next level with all her amazing accessories, micro chains, studded embellishments, patent shoes, dip dyed hair… (She is not a minimalist!!!) It was important to stay close to the source while giving dimension through fashion details and AY’s signature facial portraiture, capturing the essence of that character or person.

How did you first begin working with dolls and fabrics?

A: I’ve always loved dolls, and always wanted to make my own. But I never thought of it as a career—and being that I always happened to be a little better at drawing pretty girls in pretty dresses I went to school for fashion design. I managed to work my way up to an amazing job in the industry—where I was developing collections with the most beautiful fabrics. Part of being a designer is figuring out how to reinvent fabrics, create new trims, and techniques. But I wasn’t happy—I wasn’t feeling creatively satisfied making clothes for the uber wealthy—so I started making dolls on the side, and through some magical circumstances I was ‘discovered’ by Anna Wintour—and soon found myself recreating mini looks from the runways for luxury retailers and window displays all around the world—alongside a very robust custom business. But, fashion has a very short attention span, so I started to plan for the next steps—working in the licensing space to create some amazing effigies of characters we know and love. I teamed up with Danny, who had spent several years building a lifestyle brand around a very famous stylist, and is also an expert in the boy toy/comic/and character space.

Do you have a favorite DC hero or villain? Maybe a character that you’d love to work on but haven’t yet?

A: I’m a big fan of the Joker; he’s the ultimate villain. Un-paralleled Style, strong point of view, and a healthy dose of chaos, all qualities worth emulating. He has had so many awesome and distinct iterations through time.

D: Even his random one-offs from the Hawaiian killing joke, to Kenner’s Sky Escape Joker figure, and every single amazing depiction on film are worth noting. We love his fully stylized life. No one does full branded villain better than the Joker. But, Selina Kyle from Batman Returns is also a huge personal favorite, she speaks to the best of the early 90’s couture and attitude of a fashion favorite Thierry Mugler, a really bad-ass vision that speaks to the AY aesthetic.

What would readers/viewers of your pieces know that they might not catch at first glance?

D: We like calling on their strong personalities, and detailing them with hints from across all of their iterations. Be it Catwoman; with her light sparkle hue winking towards Julie Newmar or the patent glove reaching for Michelle Phieffer. We gave her a Chanel inspired whip/ tail for that double hint of luxury and utility that is duly fitted for Ms. Kyle.

A: Yes—I really wanted to make sure we translated the essence of the characters in a really chic fashion way—but also keep them cuddly. I mean, who wouldn’t want to snuggle up next to Joker right after he breaks out of Arkham Asylum?