Bronze Hapiko Statue by Yosuke Ueno

Back in November of 2010, one of Gallery1988SF’s last shows featured the work of the very talented Yosuke Ueno. I remember thinking, “I wish someone would make toys out of Ueno’s characters.” Unbeknownst to me, Los Angeles’s Toy Art Gallery had been working with Ueno on their first bronze sculpture.

Hapiko, as described by Yosuke, is a Lucky God, common in Japanese folklore since ancient times. She is a quintessential Yosuke Ueno character, a smooth, innocent figure, nose-less and without eyebrows. She is often featured in Yosuke’s paintings and represents the Happy Girl.

The Hapiko bronze statue was sculpted by Yosuke Ueno, stands 9 inches tall and is limited to an edition of 10 pieces. It goes on sale Monday,  March 7th 2011 at store.toyartgallery.com. Looking good, TAG. [Note: Although you can’t really “play” with a bronze statue, you can always make an animated .gif…]