Once upon a time… the toys of tradition

On April 25, 2019, on the occasion of the XXVI SAGRA DE SU PANI SABA, the exhibition “Once upon a time… the toys of tradition” was held in SINI at sa Domu de Tziu Modestinu . The project was curated by the Museum of Traditional Toys of Sardinia and the Cultour Società Cooperativa Sociale ONLUS in collaboration with the Municipal Administration of Ales and the Pro Loco Sini.

The event was structured with a dual soul: a temporary exhibition and an educational-experiential workshop.

The exhibition. The exhibition was created with a selection of artifacts from the collection of the Museum of Traditional Toys of Sardinia in Zeppara (Ales), capable of reflecting the distinctive aspects of the society and time in which they were originally produced: simplicity, imagination and communion with nature. Indeed, carts, little horses, dolls etc. are made using poor, often recycled or readily available materials such as reeds, cork, wood, scraps of fabric and old cans. The exhibition was aimed at the children of the past who, digging into their memories, were able to find in these toys the companions of their own childhood, and at the children of today who instead will have the opportunity to discover toys capable of fascinating and intriguing them. The young visitors, on the other hand, “got involved” and tried their hand at making a traditional toy, participating in the workshop “The Games of My Grandparents” curated by the Toy Museum operator.

Lab. The museum operator engaged the children in an animated reading during which the toy was then revealed and described, which the participants later replicated. At the end of the workshop each child took home the self-made toy as a memento of the experience.