What's in your Poketo?

The artist collaborative takes work off the walls and into your pocket

By Cat Morley
Published: September 9th, 2006 | 1:33pm

Poketo is a brand that works with artists and designers to produce unique and desirable products to sell through their online shop. The brand creates a new concept for how we view art by making it wearable and providing us with a great way to show off our taste and personal style.

The group was founded in 2003 by Angie Myung and Ted Vadakan, and started producing wallets to help artists promote their work. It started with a small number of emerging artists and the wallets were made as promotional pieces to give away at art shows and exhibits. "When we decided to have our first show around the Poketo wallet concept, everyone we invited instantly jumped onboard! Making art that goes beyond the traditional gallery space is exciting to most artists because it has the possibility of reaching the widest audience. We want art to travel, and we do this through our products, website, and other online communities."

The construction of the wallets is so simple, but that’s the beauty of them. Two strips of clear plastic are stitched around a piece of art; this keeps the wallet thin and means that it fits in to a pocket perfectly. The clear plastic makes it easy to see how much change you have at a glance, which is great for when you're in a rush for the bus. It is Poketo's goal "to infuse art [as] part of one's everyday life."

Artists from all over the globe contribute their work exclusively to Poketo, making the wallets very individual and a great collectors item. A small biography and the artist’s contact information is included inside each wallet sold, helping to get the word out about new and emerging talent. Bands, such as the Postal Service and the Shins, and magazines, such as ReadyMade, have commissioned unique wallets from the collective. The latest series of wallets are designed exclusively by artists from Tokyo, including Taku Anekawa and Akinori Shimodaira. "Poketo is a collective of different creative minds and ideas, that is what makes it so eclectic and spontaneous. When we work with artists, it is a natural collaboration because we all want to be involved in something creative and limitless."

Poketo search far and wide for artists to join their collective, but artists are also welcome to submit their own work. "The work has to be strong, visually interesting, and unique. There is not one particular type of work or artist that we look for. The artist's dedication to their particular craft is particularly important. Artists that are passionate in what they do, their energies and passion are clearly reflected in their work, and that really attracts us to their work."

With more than 70 artists to date, the collective is growing fast. So what does the future hold for the San Francisco collective? Nowadays, the product line has branched out to include sketchbooks, tees, and even home-wares. It is Poketo's mission "to make art part of the everyday and to continue to promote and be a launch pad for artists and inventive ideas. We strive to create a community of artists and supporters and lovers of art through what we do whether it is throwing art shows, putting out new collections of artists goods, or even through our online communities about artists that we admire. "

Poketo products are available at poketo.com.