EBoy
Encyclopedia
eBoy is a pixel art
group founded in 1997 by Kai Vermehr, Steffen Sauerteig and Svend Smital.
Their complex illustrations have been made into posters, shirts, souvenirs, and even displayed in gallery exhibitions. They were founded on May 2, 1997, expressing their modular and collaborative approach as something that defines eBoy as much as the use of pixels. "We started working with pixels because we loved the idea of making pictures only for the screen. It’s the best way to get really sharp and clean looking results. Also, handling pixels is fun and you are forced to simplify and abstract things, which is a big advantage of this technique."
Based in Berlin, eBoy's founders collaborate with Peter Stemmler in New York to produce graphic design work for companies.
They express their art as an extension of their childhood. Their influences come from: "Pop culture... shopping, supermarkets, TV, toy commercials, LEGO
, computer games, the news, magazines..."
Kai was the only one who grew up with Nintendo
to inspire him, the rest of the eBoys lived in East Germany where video games didn't exist.
Their work makes intense use of popular culture and commercial icons, and their style is presented in three-dimensional isometric
illustrations filled with robots, cars, guns and girls. Mostly their designs are printed today and not used solely for computer screens anymore, allowing images to get more complex with details."If we don’t work on other projects at the same time it takes about six to eight weeks to finish a very detailed cityscape, three eBoy’s working on it, nearly full time. But, if we have to do it in our spare time, which happens often, it could take years to finish a picture since we can’t spend so much time on it." Their unique style has gained them a cult following among graphic designers worldwide, as well as a long list of commercial clients. Their latest project are plastic Peecol toys with Kidrobot, and
soon a new line of wooden toys are to be produced under their own label.
eBoy has worked with named brands and companies such as Coca-Cola
, MTV
, VH1
, Adidas
, Gola
and Honda
. They have also worked in creating the album cover for Groove Armada
's 2007 studio album Soundboy Rock
.
The first solo UK exhibition of eBoy at the Minuco underground gallery in Clerkenwell
London
. The show was very well received; fans from as far afield as Cardiff
and Cumbria
made the trip down to London
. The show got press attention which spanned as far as Brazil
.
eBoy-LA - 2008
This exhibition at Concrete Hermit in London
saw Los Angeles
get the eBoy unique visionary panoramic treatment. There was also a chance to see the development of the Peecols – eBoy’s series of toys. These innovative toys are highly collectable, and there was the rare opportunity to see the Blockbob prototypes and special limited editions of the figures.
Pixel art
Pixel art is a form of digital art, created through the use of raster graphics software, where images are edited on the pixel level. Graphics in most old computer and video games, graphing calculator games, and many mobile phone games are mostly pixel art.- History :The term pixel art was first...
group founded in 1997 by Kai Vermehr, Steffen Sauerteig and Svend Smital.
Their complex illustrations have been made into posters, shirts, souvenirs, and even displayed in gallery exhibitions. They were founded on May 2, 1997, expressing their modular and collaborative approach as something that defines eBoy as much as the use of pixels. "We started working with pixels because we loved the idea of making pictures only for the screen. It’s the best way to get really sharp and clean looking results. Also, handling pixels is fun and you are forced to simplify and abstract things, which is a big advantage of this technique."
Based in Berlin, eBoy's founders collaborate with Peter Stemmler in New York to produce graphic design work for companies.
They express their art as an extension of their childhood. Their influences come from: "Pop culture... shopping, supermarkets, TV, toy commercials, LEGO
Lego
Lego is a line of construction toys manufactured by the Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of colorful interlocking plastic bricks and an accompanying array of gears, minifigures and various other parts...
, computer games, the news, magazines..."
Kai was the only one who grew up with Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
to inspire him, the rest of the eBoys lived in East Germany where video games didn't exist.
Their work makes intense use of popular culture and commercial icons, and their style is presented in three-dimensional isometric
Isometric projection
Isometric projection is a method for visually representing three-dimensional objects in two dimensions in technical and engineering drawings...
illustrations filled with robots, cars, guns and girls. Mostly their designs are printed today and not used solely for computer screens anymore, allowing images to get more complex with details."If we don’t work on other projects at the same time it takes about six to eight weeks to finish a very detailed cityscape, three eBoy’s working on it, nearly full time. But, if we have to do it in our spare time, which happens often, it could take years to finish a picture since we can’t spend so much time on it." Their unique style has gained them a cult following among graphic designers worldwide, as well as a long list of commercial clients. Their latest project are plastic Peecol toys with Kidrobot, and
soon a new line of wooden toys are to be produced under their own label.
eBoy has worked with named brands and companies such as Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
, Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
, Gola
Gola
Gola may refer to:Groups and tribes:*Gola , in Balochistan, Pakistan*Gola people, a tribal people and language in Liberia*Gola , native to south-east Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Western Uttar Pradesh regions of IndiaPlace names:...
and Honda
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...
. They have also worked in creating the album cover for Groove Armada
Groove Armada
Groove Armada is an English electronic music duo from London, England comprising Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They are perhaps best known for their singles "I See You Baby" and "Superstylin'"...
's 2007 studio album Soundboy Rock
Soundboy Rock
Soundboy Rock is the fifth studio album by London-based Electronica Dance duo Groove Armada which was released on May 4, 2007. The album was released on CD, vinyl, and also as a limited CD package with 2 bonus tracks . The first single taken off the album was "Get Down", released on 30 April 2007....
.
Exhibitions
SuperBroncoBattle - 2004The first solo UK exhibition of eBoy at the Minuco underground gallery in Clerkenwell
Clerkenwell
Clerkenwell is an area of central London in the London Borough of Islington. From 1900 to 1965 it was part of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury. The well after which it was named was rediscovered in 1924. The watchmaking and watch repairing trades were once of great importance...
London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The show was very well received; fans from as far afield as Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
and Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
made the trip down to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The show got press attention which spanned as far as Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
.
eBoy-LA - 2008
This exhibition at Concrete Hermit in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
saw Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
get the eBoy unique visionary panoramic treatment. There was also a chance to see the development of the Peecols – eBoy’s series of toys. These innovative toys are highly collectable, and there was the rare opportunity to see the Blockbob prototypes and special limited editions of the figures.
