Ep. 269 Toys on Tap w/ Ali Bates: Building a Toy Scene From Scratch in South Africa
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In this landmark episode of Toys on Tap, host interviews Ali Bates, the first artist from Africa to be featured on the show, hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa. Ali shares his journey from a childhood immersed in outdoor activities and sketching to a creative awakening during the 2020 lockdown, which reignited his passion for art and led him to explore designer toys. Inspired by sneaker culture, graffiti, and a pivotal moment watching a Vice documentary about 3D-printed guns, Ali bought his first 3D printer and began sculpting, starting with a simple cardboard box character before evolving into his signature bag-headed figures. These playful, culturally charged sculptures—like the Bart Simpson and Cause-themed pieces—use the paper bag as a canvas for pop culture remixes while maintaining a mysterious, faceless identity. Ali also delves into his more recent, emotionally resonant devil sculptures, which reflect a shift toward sculptural minimalism and conceptual art. Despite challenges like limited local awareness of art toys, high shipping costs, and a nascent scene, Ali remains committed to building a community and pushing creative boundaries. He discusses upcoming drops, gallery shows with Greyside Gallery and Brompton, and his vision for scaling production while staying true to his hands-on, DIY roots. The episode captures the raw energy of creating art in isolation and the quiet triumph of building a scene from scratch on a continent where it’s still emerging.
Start with curiosity and accessibility: Ali’s journey began not with formal training, but with a sketchbook and a 3D printer bought after seeing a documentary about 3D-printed guns—proving that inspiration can come from unexpected places.
The bag head is both a personal symbol and a cultural tool: It represents Ali’s introverted nature, allows for playful pop culture remixes (like Bart Simpson on a Quickie Mart bag), and serves as a unifying visual identity across his work.
Art and commerce are intertwined: Ali balances small-scale, hand-painted drops with gallery collaborations and future factory production, showing how indie artists can grow sustainably while staying true to their vision.
Building a scene from scratch is hard—but rewarding: In South Africa, where art toys are still misunderstood and shipping is prohibitively expensive, Ali sees value in educating audiences and being a pioneer in a developing community.
Emotion can be conveyed without a face: His devil sculptures, faceless and minimalist, communicate deep emotion through pose and form, demonstrating that art toys can be as expressive as traditional sculpture.
Welcome & First African Guest
“This is worth it. I don't know if you've ever heard of an episode of Toys on Tap, but we interview all the artists behind the toys and you are my first artist that I've interviewed from South Africa, which is dope.”
Ali's Creative Awakening in 2020
Ali recounts how the 2020 lockdown sparked a creative rebirth. After dropping out of school and working in graphic design, he rediscovered art through a sketchbook gifted by his brother, leading to a fascination with designer toys and 3D printing.
From Sketchbook to 3D Printing
“I watched a documentary on Vice that was like about these dudes printing guns and I was like if these cats like are doing it it can't be that hard you know so like yeah we searched into it a little bit and i was like oh shit this is actually something i could probably afford”
The Birth of the Bag Head
“Originally I started just obviously being like, okay, shit, what's the simplest thing I could make? So I started out with a little box character that was literally, he's an upside down cardboard box with legs and a hole for eyes.”
Navigating the South African Scene
“When you say like toys here, everyone immediately goes back to like, oh, it's a toy, like, you know, explore kids and shit. So like that's been something kind of like interesting to navigate.”
“You can make a gun. You can obviously make a toy.”
“I watched a documentary on Vice that was like about these dudes printing guns and I was like if these cats like are doing it it can't be that hard you know so like yeah we searched into it a little bit and i was like oh shit this is actually something i could probably afford”
“I think I'm also interested in like the sort of art and the crossover between art toy and art world and like where does that sort of link so like also trying to come up with something that's maybe more sculptural and like conceptual than like an actual figure”
Host
Guest
Ali Bates
person
Toys on Tap
media
South Africa
place
Bag Head
other
3D Printing
other
Devil Sculpture
other
Comic-Con Africa
other
Rastu
person
Johannesburg
place
The Introvert
other
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