Toyism

Toyism is a contemporary art movement founded in the Netherlands in 1992. Its artists create colorful, figurative works and share a collective artistic identity.

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Dejo: Dejo is the pseudonym of the Dutch artist who founded Toyism in 1992. He initiated the movement and wrote its first manifesto.
Figurative art: Figurative art depicts recognizable people, objects, or scenes. Toyist works use recognizable imagery rather than abandoning depiction.
Everywhere I Go: Everywhere I Go is a Toyist mural project covering grain silos in Emmen, Netherlands. The project brings the movement’s imagery onto a large public structure.
Abstract art: Abstract art uses forms and colors that do not directly depict recognizable subjects. Toyism generally favors recognizable figures and scenes over nonrepresentational composition.
Play (aesthetics): Play in aesthetics describes the imaginative, rule-bound activity through which art invites exploration and invention. Toyism’s name and imagery evoke play without making its artistic program merely childish.
Toyism Manifesto: The Toyism Manifesto is the founding text outlining the movement’s artistic principles and collective identity. It set out the ideas that distinguished Toyism at its founding.
Color theory: Color theory describes relationships among colors and their effects in visual composition. Vivid color is a defining feature of Toyist compositions.
Street art: Street art is visual art created in public spaces, often outside conventional galleries. Toyism’s public mural projects connect its work with art made in shared urban settings.
Individualism: Individualism emphasizes the autonomy and distinct identity of each person. Toyism’s shared identity challenges the expectation that artists foreground individual personas.
Authorship: Authorship is the attribution of a creative work to its maker or makers. Collective identity and aliases complicate how Toyist works are attributed.