At this time debates were triggered about toy design, a field some saw as riddled with
militarism, pernicious nationalism, and negative racial or gender stereotyping. International groups of concerned child psychologists, manufacturers, educators, and designers joined forces to promote “good toys” that were well designed, safe, and nonviolent. In the ruins of many European cities, similarly interdisciplinary groups of professionals worked with children to reclaim bombedout areas through therapeutic play. In the aftermath of brutality and devastation, many designers sought to recover a lost innocence embodied in the spontaneity and directness of children’s art, and to emulate the constructive impulse of children’s play.
Charles and Ray Eames in California, Aldo van Eyck and CoBrA artists in Amsterdam, and
members of the Independent Group in London all epitomized this preoccupation with the child and children’s worldview. In addition to works by these designers, works on view in this section include Jean Prouve’s School Desk; LEGO building blocks and the Slinky; a Swingline Toy Chest; recreated elements of a playroom designed by György and Juliet Kepes; and wooden toys by Brio, Antonio Vitali, Kurt Naef, and Kay Bojesen.
Power Play
The sixth section explores different ways in which children and consumer culture have exerted power over each other from the 1960s through the end of the 20th century, a broad span of time held together by the prevailing concept of the child as an autonomous consumer.
After World War II innovation and mass production fueled a proliferation of goods for
children and contributed to intensified market research and advertising aimed at children all over the world, as well as to concerns about exploitation. Design for children in this period encompassed tangible advances in materials and techniques as well as the influence of external factors such as the Cold War. In the digital realms of gaming and communication, children surpassed adults’ command of innovative design. They have also processed the images and text of material culture and mass media in their own ways, sometimes in active subversion of intended meanings and purposes, as in contemporary Japan, where a deep fascination with youth is manifested by young girls shaping their identities through fashion, accessories, and creative products.
Among the nearly 100 objects in the section is a selection of original pieces from the
television program Pee-wee’s Playhouse, which aired on CBS from 1986 to 1991, including a section of the Playhouse wall and various characters (“Conky,” “Globey,” and “Clocky”). Other works on view include Soviet Bloc space toys such as the Hungarian Holdrakèta rocket, Marc Berthier’s polyester-and-fiberglass Ozoo 700 desk, Peter Ellenshaw’s 1954 plan of Disneyland; H. Noata’s Black Goth Lolita Ensemble; a set of Chica Demountable Child’s Chairs; and plastic and inflatable toys by the Czechoslovakian designer Libuše Niklová.
Designing Better Worlds
The final section looks at the complex and often contradictory ideas about the place of children in the modern world that have emerged in the last half century through passionate public discourse among educators, parents, and politicians, and through design. The works presented herald a pronounced progressive or idealistic philosophy; they attempt to communicate to children that they deserve a better world, and that this world might be possible.
Works on view include toys designed and handcrafted by children in a South African
village, via the Sharing to Learn program; Jukka Veistola’s UNICEF poster from 1969; the XO laptop from the One Laptop per Child program; Renate Müller’s therapeutic Modular Indoor Play Area and Marimekko clothing and do-it-yourself toys; and Isamu Noguchi designs for play equipment and Riverside Park Playground.
PUBLICATIONS:
A related publication, Century of the Child: Growing by Design, 1900-2000, includes an introductory essay by curator Juliet Kinchin, giving historical context to the kaleidoscopic narrative of ideas, practitioners, and artifacts featured in the book. The publication also features richly illustrated thematic essays by a range of international curators and scholars, organized in loosely chronological order. 9 ½ x 12", 264 pages, 425 illustrations. Hardcover, $60. Published by The Museum of Modern Art and available at the MoMA stores and online at MoMAStore.org. and Amazon.
(1) Jean Prouvé (French, 1901–1984). School desk. 1946. Enameled steel and oak. Manufactured by Ateliers Jean Prouvé, Nancy. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Dorothy Cullman Purchase Fund
(2) Omnibot 2000, remote-controlled robot. c. 1985. Various materials. Manufactured by Tomy (formerly Tomiyama), Katsushika, Tokyo. Space Age Museum/Kleeman Family Collection, Litchfield, Connecticut
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