Cj Hendry’s Juju rabbits sell out due to demand, not to hold-up at Customs, IMBA clarifies
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Juju plushies by Australian contemporary artist Cj Hendry.
ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
SINGAPORE – Artist Cj Hendry’s soft toy rabbits Juju sold out within the first weekend of her exhibition as the result of unexpected demand, not due to a hold-up at the Singapore Customs, exhibition space IMBA Theatre told The Straits Times.
This comes after the New York-based Australian artist said on Instagram that she was “pi**ed” at the empty shelves in her Juju World exhibition, which she opened on June 19, with batches of Jujus awaiting clearance for import.
Jujus are plush rabbits emblazoned with a flower eye patch that the artist designed with the help of artificial intelligence, exclusively sold in Singapore as part of the bouncy castle experience she has created at Gardens by the Bay.
Those who still want the Jujus will now have to wait till September, pay an additional $15 delivery fee and show proof that they have purchased a ticket to Juju World. Large-sized Jujus are already being scalped on online marketplace Carousell for up to $250, more than twice the original $99.
IMBA Theatre, the two-month-old exhibition space at Gardens by the Bay, said: “Due to exceptionally high demand during opening weekend, selected Juju collectibles and merchandise items became unavailable earlier than anticipated.
“This was a result of overwhelming demand for the product – separate from any customs matter. Like any international shipment, any restock shipments are subject to standard customs processing.”
The experience is scheduled to run till July 18. IMBA Theatre, which declined to reveal how many Jujus have been sold, will have questions to answer over how it had miscalculated by such a large margin.
The Jujus were available only at the show because Hendry set out to create an in-person experience, and it is unclear if those with tickets will still turn up without the enticement of the collectibles.
Before the opening of Juju World, Hendry drew 60,000 visitors to IMBA Theatre over six days from June 10 to 15 for her Flower Market exhibition, where people could pick and buy exclusive flower plushies.
Flower Market had inspired similar fervour. The artist reacted with a shrug to complaints that some of these buyers were scalpers, telling the media that “we can’t control every outcome and I don’t like the idea of putting constraints on an exhibition”.
As to whether the behaviour of buyers is a meta-commentary on consumerism or artistic value, she also said: “I think people are just getting too deep.”
The Jujus are meant to be a commentary on the fad of Labubu, the toothier rabbit created by Hong Kong artist Kasing Lung. Hendry said she wanted to create something “that feels less (money) grabby” with more storytelling elements that will endure in people’s minds.
