Form of Play

Abstract

I describe the work that I have made for my MFA thesis show as sculptural, Modernist inspired furniture, with forms based on or derived from those of classic mass manufactured children’s toys. It is a body of work which was initially conceived as a reaction to what I felt were the latent formal associations between certain types of children’s toys and prototypical Modernist furniture designs. The idea that there may be a relationship between toys and Modernism first occurred to me in the early part of 2010, while obtaining my bachelor of science in industrial design. Later that year I solidified my intention to create a body of artwork which would explore both the validity of that perceived connection and its aesthetic potential. This paper and the thesis exhibition which it is written to document and accompany are the tangible results of that intention.