Exhibition at the Toy Museum in Deventer; Toy design, interplay of Rokus and Corry van Blokland Mobach is on display until March 2, 2025.
In spacious display cases, toy designs for the Sio toy factory in Vroomshoop are exhibited. Additionally, independent work is also showcased. During his studies at the CIV, Rokus was already hired as an industrial designer at Sio. The assignments Rokus received and developed during his studies (including from architect Gerrit Rietveld) inspired him to continue, both in his independent work and in his designs for Sio.
Design for children
In the years following their time at the academy, the collaboration between Rokus and Corry quickly flourished. In a short period, they created a diverse body of work, ranging from toys to packaging, labels, exhibition stands, spatial designs, drawings, and illustrations, all in a distinct and recognizable style. In the gray post-war period, their designs brought color into many living rooms, both at home and abroad.
Creating toys that aren’t complete,
toys should invite play,
watching children is like observing clients.
These are just a few of their statements about toy design. Their approach emphasized creating toys where the designer doesn’t look down from above but stands at the child’s eye level. Allowing children to discover the world through Rokus and Corry’s use of scale, shape, and color. From blocks that fit perfectly in a preschooler’s hand to brightly colored, often abstract stacks of balancing figures with blocks and wheels, like those in Sio Mobilo. All featured in this exhibition.
The large drawing on the wall is based on the board game Kom Mee Naar Buiten (Come Outside with Me), designed in 1958 for the trade union NVV. The board game is designed by Rokus and Corry, drawing by Corry.
3 colors: cyan, magenta, and yellow
The game Kom Mee Naar Buiten (Come Outside with Me) is printed in three colors: cyan (light blue), magenta (pink), and yellow. These colors can be printed over each other to create blended colors, such as blue with pink forming purple, and yellow with blue creating green. For each color, Corry made a working drawing, allowing her to experiment freely with overlapping color fields.
All three colors layered together produce (almost) black, as seen in the cows. By slightly shifting the color fields, beautiful colorful edges appeared, even creating a pink nose.
