Building Toys and Toy Buildings

Architecture Through A Child’s Eyes: Building Toys and Toy Buildings

Lincoln Logs. TinkerToys. Erector Sets. LEGO. And, of course, the humble wooden block. The timeline of the toys that we’ve used to build our fantasy buildings, towns and towers is long and varied. The Architecture and Design Exchange (AD EX) explores this experience in Building Toys and Toy Buildings: Architecture Through A Child’s Eyes, open December 13, 2019, through January 25, 2020. The exhibition includes a wide spectrum of vintage and modern toys, including unusual examples like the Eames House of Cards, AstroBrite and Girder and Panel Sets. A section of the exhibition examines a variety of blocks—from German stone Anchor Blocks dating from the early 1900’s to the colored Playskool wooden blocks that have been a part of so many toy boxes for decades. Additionally, the show looks at the various toy buildings in existence, with a special emphasis on doll houses, including one of the first Barbie Dream Houses and a house built by an architect for his daughter in the 1970’s. Also included are groups of buildings from the Fisher-Price collection and the metal toys of the Marx Company. A highlight of the show is a 6-foot tall K’Nex Ferris Wheel made up of 8,550 individual pieces.
While the exhibit itself is “hands-off,” visitors will have the chance to design and build their own structure with blocks, TinkerToys and LEGOs in our “Construction Zone.”

The show will run through January 25 at the Architecture and Design Exchange (AD EX), 325 N. St. Paul Street, Suite 150 (first floor of Republic Center at the corner of St. Paul and Pacific). The exhibition is free and open to the public from 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Saturday, with additional hours on Thursday evenings from 6:00-8:00 p.m. Special Family Days with refreshments and additional activities will be held on December 14 and 28, January 4 and 18, from 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. AD EX will be closed on December 23, 24, 25, 26 and 31, and January 1.

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