Michael Thai Ly

Your favorite existentially-distressed dinosaurs are now collectible vinyl mini figures! The Happy Little Dinosaurs Vinyl Mini Series features eight of your favorite dino characters, plus two new mystery characters. Each box comes with a vinyl figure and a promo card you can use in the game. Plug the new card into your Disaster deck to play with your Happy Little Dinosaurs base game and expansions.

I was responsible for digitally sculpting all characters within this series based on the card game artwork Happy Little Dinosaurs.

Casting Shadows vinyl mini figures are based off of characters from the hit strategy card game Casting Shadows. Game mechanics allow players to evolve their base characters as they level up throughout the game. These vinyl figurines can be used during gameplay.

Marker Mascot Series 1 was a collaboration between Secret Walls and five world famous artists in developing limited edition NFT, curated on Nifty Gateway.

Base character design was developed by @ffsjimi and myself. I was tasked with applying artists’ unique designs onto the base Marker Mascot character via 3D modeling.

Featured artists:
@secretwalls
@gregmike
@jonburgerman
@missupacey
@nychos
@og_slick

Bowlasaur is a concept character that loves strutting around flaunting his golden nug. He’s the chillest because he never bogarts the nacho chips and bean dip. Character was modeled in Zbrush, and rendered in Keyshot.

This is a renditioning the character Naga the Serpentine from the card game Exiled Legends by TeeTurtle. The character was modeled in ZBrush and rendered in Keyshot.

Boo is a ghostly character that was designed by original artist, Charlie Gaines (Instagram: @charlietheghost.jpg). The intent was to reinterpret the character in 3D space. Boo was modeled in Zbrush and rendered in Keyshot.

An artistic stylization on the TMNT form with the use of hard and curved edges. The color black is was used as the base color to conceal the character, but to also help push its core accent color. The figure was modeled in ZBrush and rendered in Keyshot.

The series is a collaboration between Kidrobot and American Greetings in re-imagining one of their highly acclaimed properties, Care Bears. The intent was to celebrate the artistic approach that is unique to the Kidrobot brand with the Care Bears’ iconography.

The Labbit Insect Kingdom was a collaborative effort between a colleague and myself by creating a thematic world in which Labbits ruled as insects. We designed a series that consisted of 16 different collectible vinyl characters, each a unique species. I was tasked with packaging design. My colleague was in charge of designing the vinyl figures.

These are custom designed concrete and cement castings used as vessels.  Existing plastic figures were used to create silicon molds in order to create high fidelity copies in another material.  There are three color variants: (from left to right) Weathered Vessel, Standard Gray Vessel, and Kintsugi Vessel.  Each stands about 6-inches tall.    

The Kintsugi variant is ironically my most favorite.  The design was initially a mistake, but brought back to life using the Japanese art of Kintsugi, the joining of gold.  The purpose is to highlight and celebrate the damaged, but as thing of beauty and strength.    

All three were exhibited and auctioned at the Rule Gallery at the Santa Fe art district, located in Denver, CO.        

This 3-inch collectible series is a collaboration between Kidrobot and Adult Swim, featuring some of the late night animated series from Rick & Morty, Venture Brothers, Samurai Jack, Fish Center, Robot Chicken, Squidbillies, Too Many Cooks, and game app Robot Unicorn Attack. 

The Simpsons' Mr. Sparkles, 6-inch vinyl figure was designed by myself, while packaging was designed by a colleague.  The intent was to celebrate the character as a dynamic free-flowing energy who is disrespectful to dirt!

Andy Warhol was one of the most prolific contemporary artists of the 20th century.  The majority of artwork we see today have been influenced by Andy in one way or another.  The plush piece here is my reinterpretation of a silk screened pistol and banana he produced.  The juxtaposition between the soft poly twill and visualized gun have weight.  Both measures 24-inches across.  

An Internet protocol camera, or IP camera, is a type of digital video camera commonly used for surveillance.  These cameras can transmit and receive data through computer network and the internet.  This was one of the few concept designs I developed for a client. The intent was to update and refresh their current product line by incorporating a more minimal and modern aesthetic approach.  The model was built in SolidWorks and rendered in Keyshot.

Momma Labbit just gave birth to a litter of five Littons.  These were one of many initiatives in expanding the Labbit universe by providing a few new additions to the family.  Momma Labbit measures 24-inches in length, with each Litton being 6-inches.  All can be stowed away in Momma's pouch for safe keeping.    

Diamond Supply Co. is a renown skateboard company based out of Los Angeles, CA, known for their skateboard hardware and apparel.  The 3-inch vinyl figure, Diamond Cutty, was a collaborative release between Kidrobot and Diamond Supply Co.  The release consisted of 3 3-inch vinyl figures, a 7-inch vinyl figure and limited edition t-shirt.  I was responsible for design and 3-D modeling in SolidWorks.

Cowabunga dudes!  This was a collaborative license series Kidrobot released with Nickelodeon.  The collection consisted of three different products, 1.5-inch vinyl keychain series, 3-inch vinyl figure series, and two 7-inch vinyl figures.  The style was inspired from the original 80's hit tv series.  

Puff Jake n' Lil Finn was as fun a project to work on, as much as it was to watch the tv-series.  The intent was to show the symbiotic relationship between Finn the human, and Jake his dog.  Jake is a character who has the power to morph into all sorts of shapes and sizes.  This design approach was to look through the lens of an urban dweller with his Jake parka and B.M.O music player.      

MiWi (Meaningful Innovation Wow Experience) is a mascot that was developed for Samsung.  This was part of a program in which Samsung was involved with the 2014 FIFA World Cup, promoting their Galaxy product line.  I was responsible for designing the blank figure; my colleagues designed the graphical elements and packaging.  The 3-inch vinyl series represented players from around the world.     

MiWi was also featured at the 2014 CES (International Consumer Electronic Show) in Vegas, with independent artists around the country customizing multiple 4-foot version statues.  

Blueberry was a collaborative effort with artist Yury Ustsinau, based in Frankfurt, Germany.  I was responsible for extrapolating Yury's amazing 2D art, into orthographic views with a breakdown of parts for product development and production.

Throwie is a 4-inch toy clock concept that is a reinterpretation of the traditional desk clock.  These time pieces can function individually, or more powerfully together with a group of friends via Bluetooth connection.  Throwie was designed and modeled in SolidWorks and rendered in Keyshot.  

This was a study of product design I conducted through analyzing human ergonomics, user interface, product deconstruction, hardware fabrication, and reconstruction. Through these studies, a designer can better understand the complex relationship between user interaction and engineering, a key factor in producing effective design.