Clutter Magazine
Clutter Magazine is a monthly publication that caters to the world of underground designer toys and the artists that create them. After emerging in Japan in the late 1990s, the toy scene has gone global, led by companies such as Toy2R, Kidrobot, and Medicom, and Clutter is the first English language magazine to showcase them. Since the world of designer toys has crossed over into many other mediums the magazine also covers other areas relating to design including graffiti, shoes, comics, animation, and film.
History
Clutter Magazine was formed in 2004 by Miranda O'Brien and Nick Carroll with the intention of providing information to collectors outside of Asia who had largely been ignored by other publications. O'Brien had been an avid collector of designer toys since the late 1990s and was always forced to import magazines from Japan and scour the internet to collect the pieces she wanted. She introduced Carroll to her obsession and soon after he became an enthusiastic collector as well. Sharing their frustrations over the lack of an English language periodical that dealt with their favorite hobby, Miranda suggested they fill the void themselves. Having just graduated from Coventry University with degrees in graphic design, the pair reached out to toy producers and artists and were met with an overwhelming enthusiasm for their idea.
The first issue of Clutter was released in December 2004 and included a cover designed by Pete Fowler and articles on Tado, James Jarvis and many more. Since then artists who have done work for the magazine, include Tim Biskup, Gary Baseman, Tara McPherson, Angry Woebots, ilovedust, Sket One and Tristan Eaton.
Shortly after launching the first issue of the magazine, the website www.cluttermagazine.com went live. The website was a way to report breaking news and keep readers informed on releases while allowing the print magazine to stay focused on interviews with the artists and the processes involved in making the toys.
After O'Brien move to the United States that put the magazine on temporary hiatus, Clutter has set June 2011 as the date in which it will officially relaunch. The website has received a complete overhaul as well, debuting a new look in December 2010 that added many new features to make it more interactive and informative. The new website was created by KTVMI, a New York and UK based animation and technology studio that has partnered with Clutter to create exclusive content and to handle advertising.