Playing on Empty - Toys from the Developing World

An exhibit of toys and photographs from the developing world taken by New Zealand Volunteer Services Abroad. The exhibit ran at the PATAKA Museum in Porirua City, New Zealand from July – November 2004. Text and photos courtesy of PATAKA.

From the Exhibit Introduction:

“In many countries parents can’t afford to buy toys for their children. Out of necessity children, often with the help of their parents, make their own. The results can be both beautiful and ingenious. They can also be moving in their simplicity.

The empty fizzy drink bottle that becomes a cherished doll or the discarded milk carton turned into a makeshift bus speak eloquently of lives devoid of material possessions. Toys crafted from wire and old tin cans are popular with tourists visiting Africa and it was one of these, a bird that flapped its wings made out of a Shell Oil can, that inspired the title of this exhibition – Playing on Empty.

Playing on Empty is a celebration of creativity, imagination and the universal desire to play. It’s also a reminder of the resourcefulness and determination of those living in the developing world.

We dedicate this exhibition to children of the world forced to work so others can play and to the adults everywhere working to put an end to the inequalities and injustices that allow that to happen.”

The first photo above shows metal push cars for racing:

“ Samoan push toys, some with double pushing handles, are very popular among the island children. Using a frame of lightweight wood and tin cans as wheels, the toys often have accessories such as mud flaps and additional cans mounted midway along the push handles into which smoking coconut husks are placed to represent the engine, the smoke pluming out behind the toy as it is pushed along.”

Other toys exhibited include kites, ball and ball games, handmade catapults, dolls made from local or recycled materials, go-carts & trolleys (2nd picture above), toy guns made of bamboo, and board games.

Related Links

Volunteer Services Abroad

PATAKA in the cultural center of Porirua City, New Zealand

Aratoi, Wairarapa Museum of Art and History Playing on Empty may currently be exhibiting here in Masterton, New Zealand