Studio profile

TOYKYO The Ghent-based design studio discusses originality, collaboration and creating its own visual playground

Born from a shared passion for striking visual culture, TOYKYO was founded in 2006 by Matheui van Damme and Joeri Steegen (aka street artist Pointdexter). Starting life as a small art collective, painting the streets and producing its own merchandise, 10 years on and TOYKYO clients range from independent organizations to global brands, from the music and fashion industry to publishing and advertising.

As image-makers, TOYKYO enjoys navigating the blurred lines between graphic design, illustration, murals, animation and set design, thriving on versatility and creative challenges.

We talked to studio partners and art directors Joeri and Esther JL Noben about their evolving collaborative approach to design and how ‘playtime’ is the key to their best work.

What was TOYKYO like in the early days?

Joeri Steegen: In the beginning, the studio functioned more as an artist platform to promote local talent. I was introduced to Mathieu van Damme (TOYKYO partner and Founder) in 2006 by our mutual friend and street artist, Bue the Warrior. Mathieu was opening a bookstore in the city of Ghent and was really interested in the local art scene. During the famous Gentse Feesten music and theatre festival my art collective, ZK, hosted a 10-day pop-up exhibition in the store leading up to its official opening. Mathieu and I hit it off and started doing some work together, which quickly led to a few commercial jobs.

Initially, it was mostly screen prints and T-shirts – small-scale stuff. TOYKYO soon started to collaborate with bigger artists from around the globe to produce sculptural artist editions. Mathieu got to know the artist Parra and curated an exhibition of his work. At the same time TOYKYO was evolving into a graphic design studio.