The Toys for Elephants project was the foundational start of what has grown to become Toys for Animals, an going Handshouse Studio project that brings together participants from many disciplines and institutions to research, observe, design, and create Environmental Enrichment Devices (EEDs or “toys”) for a variety of species of animals living at local zoos and sanctuaries. The Toys for Animals workshops are tailored to fit either within the fifteen week period of college semester or high school terms. For an undertaking that involves designing, revising, and constructing deliverable to professional clients- is an ambition endeavor!
For the first time since the pandemic lockdowns inspired the Spring 2020 Toys for Elephants class to launch Toys for Monkeys, Handshouse’s Toys for Elephants is bring offered again in collabortion with Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston, the Buttonwood Park Zoo, and the beloved Asian Elephants,, Ruth and Emily, who help Handshouse establish the Toys for Elephants project in 2010. Taught by Handshouse and Toys for Elephants project co-founders, Rick and Laura Brown alongside Marc Holland, Professor and Chair of the Studio Foundation Department, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Handshouse is thrilled to have the chance to bring this inaugural group of organizations back together again to further the research together!
2024 Handshouse Studio: Toys for Animals participants from Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston with their enrichment object, ready for delivery. (Boston, MA)
The initial step was for the class of about two dozen students (double MassArt’s usual studio class size) to break into groups of 4-6 students. Each group was responsible for conceptualizing, testing, building, and altering an enrichment toy for Ruth and Emily. After an initial research phase consisting of generalized study of elephants and toys built by previous Handshouse classes, the students met with zookeepers at the Buttonwood Park Zoo to learn about Ruth and Emily’s needs specifically. This included any challenges (such as Ruth’s tendency to stay inside the enclosure’s barn) and particular desires (such as Emily’s enjoyment of sound-making toys). The students found the experience of catering a product to a client remarkably universal, regardless of whether the client was human or elephant!
Once the students had spent several weeks creating initial sketches and miniature models of their ideas, they presented their ideas for feedback and changes from the zookeepers and professors. Once groups made appropriate changes to strengthen their designs, they were then able to begin the building phase. Nearly all groups utilized MassArt’s woodshop and metal shops, with many students learning machinery operations they would not have learned otherwise. The entire semester was a crash course in project time management (an essential skill for any working artist) and cooperation amongst team members. The “final” of the class was spent bringing their EED’s to Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, MA, where students got to observe Ruth and Emily interact with the class’s creations. It was an event marking the 14th anniversary of this remarkable collaboration.