Excerpts from the Giant Robot interview (issue 21) with Michael Lau AKA Gardener, the maker of Crazy Children toys. At Michael and Micky's flat in Hong Kong on February 5, 2001 GR: How did you get into art? ML: After graduating from high school 11 years ago, I designed window displays at department stores. During that time I studied at design school part-time. I graduated in 1992, started my collection, and had my first painting and collage exhibition in 1993. GR: The early paintings look more bleak. Were you sad then? ML: It's what I thought about the world. During that time there were a lot of homeless in Hong Kong. A lot of people were living in cardboard houses... I wanted to use my hands to achieve freedom, to go over the walls, since there are so many walls in Hong Kong. GR: Does your art give you that freedom? ML: I'm just lucky to have the opportunity... GR: What's the difference between making paintings and sculpting figures? ML: The audience is more attracted to the 3-D children, the color combination... GR: Is there collaboration with the brands like DC Shoes that you put on the characters? Do they work with you on the designs? ML: Actually, mostly I design the clothes first and stick a logo on it. That's it. It's easy.

GR: Why do you have those? ML: Whenever you see people, if they dress in hip hop style or skateboard style in T-shirt or shoes, no matter what your nationality or color, the brands are the same--Alphanumeric, Etnies, Nike. GR: Is that good? ML: They're not very original; they just want to look cool. But they may not even know how to skateboard. GR: Do you skateboard or snowboard? ML: My girlfriend and I do. GR: How do you keep up on what's cool? There is so much bad clothing in Hong Kong... ML: I read a lot of magazines tracking the trends... Giant Robot and other magazines around the world. GR: Is it hard to stay cool? ML: Go shopping­but not always buying. See people's styles. It's like seeing people's boxers. They like to show it. I think it's comfortable, but I don't show it to everyone. GR: What is a typical collector like? Do your collectors look like the crazy children? ML: Some are trendy. Some are from design school. Some are friends. Most of them are very intellectual. GR: What do they see in the art? ML: They think the culture is interesting. Paintings are a lot more difficult to understand because you have to understand the meaning. For the figures, people understand. They look at them and their jaws drop. That's why I call my company "crazysmiles." GR: Do you try to reach a certain type of person? ML: No matter who you are around the world, people have similar characteristics. If you step on someone's toes, what is the reaction? The same everywhere. Tall or short, fat or slim­it's just that type of thing.

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