Sid Dickens Spring 2011 Preview Review

Starting on January 6th the Sid Dickens company released photos of the new collection (Through the Looking Glass) one tile per day. I wish I could say something nicer than, "I love that they teased us for nine straight days" with the previews. I am underwhelmed and worried that Sid has lost his muse.

Here are the nine tiles and my initial thoughts, as well as some sober second thoughts about the entire collection and the direction Sid appears to be heading.

Hourglass: words you can spell using the letters available: emit, mite, item ... oh yeah and time. This must be a boring tile if I'm playing word games. It kind of looks like something that some of the imitation/competition would come up with ... a cheap knockoff. I know one thing is for sure, I'm not about to toss my Salvador Dali mass-produced print of Explosion in favour of this.

New Beginnings: didn't he do this tile already? I usually tune out the flowers, but I swear he's done this before. Oh I see. I'm thinking of Wandering Rose or Wild Rose, which are so different that Sid needed a new beginning. Nevermind.

Cavalry: an interesting compliment to the much older black chess pieces he did. I suppose the hideous bisque finish is what makes this gleaming white horse possible. Oh wait, he already did a white horse, only it didn't have the chess board background. I suppose hoping that disgruntled collectors could ride in on a white horse to slap some sense back into Sid is too much to hope? It really and truly looks like he's lowering his game to match the competition, rather than trying to retain the illusion that he's more artist than mass producer.
I was mildly interested in the chess pieces and pawndered (get it?) long and hard before deciding not to go down that road when Pawn was retiring. This new offering does not make me regret not buying Pawn and King.

Winged Sage: even my cats aren't interested in this tile. The only bird tile Sid ever made that is worthwhile is Bird in Flight, and that's because it has the same amazing side detail as Opera (the first tile I ever got). Sad that a tile is only interesting because of the part you barely see. For that matter, the only nice flower is Peony, because it has the most unique side detail on any tile Sid has ever done. Note to Sid, please do more cool side details, but make sure that the front of the tile doesn't (ummm how do I put this delicately?) suck.

Conundrum: was the conundrum the tough decision of whether to release this or not? Or perhaps it was coming up with a name for it and Sid was stumped for so long that he just decided to label it 'the tile I couldn't name?' Either way, it reminds me of the perfectly symmetric paper snow flakes I cut out over Christmas with my nephews ... only I think my paper snowflakes were more interesting, and I was perfectly happy to recycle those after craft time was over.

Iris Royale: the purple is stunning. It really is. Makes me want to go buy some bulbs to plant in a garden, or maybe to buy some cut flowers if I can't wait that long. Sid's fascination with putting flowers on tiles reminds me of a Browning poem, Porphyria's Lover. Luckily, this flower feels no pain in its eternalization on the walls of every grandmother in North America (and a few further abroad).

Ancient Bloom: another flower? Really? Seriously? These things must sell like beaver tails on the canal in Ottawa in the winter. I bet even Obama has one.

Festina Lente: my first impression was "What the hell? This collection is sunk!" Then I went to Wikipedia and read up on Festina Lente. This has the possibility to be cool like all the imagery Sid pulled from the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Then I saw the pictures from the trade show and how gleaming that dolphin is in the bisque finish. Anchor's away!

Faerie Flowers: four flowers? One collection? Isn't it always Spring in BC? Or is it just always raining? I think I'm going to have to consult a botanist to find out just how many more flowers there are in the world ... I suspect I'm in for several more decades of disappointment if Sid is trying to replicate them all. On the upside, there will be a nice pictorial representation once this climate change nightmare destroys all life on the planet :(

So there you have it: Through the Looking Glass. If you're looking for a complete inventory of birds and flowers, then you won't be disappointed. I've always known that the birds and flowers must sell ridiculously well. In fact, I suspect that Sid experiences a spike in sales when he releases a collection, and when he retires tiles. The more flowers and birds and fruits and colourful crap he releases, the more I realize that these are probably what drives his sales the rest of the year. Of course some of this could have to do with the retailers Sid aligns himself with. Most of them are kitschy home decor stores that are catered to women with disposable income (i.e. baby boomers and older) - precisely the clientele that will a) buy decor for the home and b) like birds and flowers. It's got to be great for business, and he knows that the retail-purchasing portion of his clientele will loyally buy these tiles by the ton.

And if Sid continues to make money, then he can continue to experiment with new ideas and explore his creative impulses. The bisque was new, I just happen to hate it. Many of the more vocal collectors on the interwebs (the same ones who drive the resale market on the nicer tiles) are likewise disappointed with the bisque. Most retailers I've spoken to are also disappointed, at least personally, but I've yet to quiz them on any kind of detrimental effect on sales.

And I know a lot of those vocal collectors share my concern that Sid is lowering his game to match his competitors, rather than leaving them diving through his dumpster looking for cast-off ideas. Many of them want Sid to return to his classic formula of chunky architectural pieces, iron-clads, and the aged dirty blonde look. Here, I have a few problems:

1. Any time Sid tries to do this (anchor-dolphin, hourglass, white knight), it comes across as something his imitators would've done. It's frightening that the quality has declined. One astute collector has pointed out that as business booms, Sid has to be able to produce more tiles faster. Intricate detail and hand-crafted details have to be minimized in order to maximize profits.
2. When Sid does re-release a new tile that's the same as an old tile we all blast him for trying to capitalize on the insane resale market with something that is actually inferior to the previous version. Newton, for instance, is nowhere near as nice as Stripey (with Script). Paragon is no Backy, etc. Of course there are exceptions that prove the rule: Unicorn II (preferably in silver) is better than fish-eye by an entire pod of dolphins wrapped around anchors.
3. The problem with fruits and flowers isn't just that they are only suitable for the lounges of grandmothers, but that he's done them before, ad nauseum. It's true that Sid's entire modus operandi is recycling ideas: Renaissance masters, secret societies and the occult, baby Jesus and the Virgin Mary, basically any image that isn't copyrighted. However, if Sid has reached the point where he doesn't feel inspired to steal a new old idea, then we're in trouble. We're more likely to blast him for recycling ideas, than we are to thank him for returning to the classic formula (Coke Classic, anyone?).

In other words, Sid is in a no-win situation with the cranky old collectors like me. If he does what I used to like, I might not like it anymore. If he does what I've never liked, then I'm almost certainly not going to start liking it. His only hope to please me is to try something new. It worked in 2003 with his finest collection. The new silver finish was more hit, than miss (unlike the bisque which is entirely miss). That's the true formula for success: capture my imagination with something honest.

But of course, I'm only one collector among thousands, so I highly doubt that Sid cares one iota what I think. Nor should he, because if he's happy with his artistic direction and the streamlining of his production facilities, then he'll be rolling in dough long after I've stopped waiting with bated breath for the next collection.

So until the Fall 2011 collection, adieux.