THE RIGHT TOY

Exhibition concept: Oskar Brůža, Helena Koenigsmarková, Petr Pech

This exhibition is intended mainly for families with pre-school and early school-aged children, encouraging them to give some thought to a selection of toys that have flooded our market. The general health and user safety of toys is guaranteed by the State which, however, is not responsible for their didactic and educational quality. “The Right Toy” is an award that is focused specifically on the pedagogical and psychological aspects that are of crucial importance for the formation of a child’s personality. This brand helps to orient parents and educators in choosing toys and games particularly for pre-school children, and to endorse the creation and sales of good toys, and their dissemination among the child population. The symbol “The Right Toy” recommends the best of them.

We present here a selection of toys awarded in the past twelve years that have been produced by six Czech toy manufacturers: the KOVAP company of Náchod excels in the production of tin toys with a tradition dating back to 1946, EFKO-karton of Nové Veselí saved the manufacture of the iconic Igráček toy and continues to develop it, the family firm ANJA draws on the now-extinct JAS cooperative of Stráž nad Nežárkou once famed for its wooden toys, the small family woodworking shop Truhlářství Křenek of Zářecká Lhota near Choceň offers toys made of fine-quality woods, and the recently founded medium-size company Noe in Lipník nad Bečvou is known for its textile toys. Last but not least, the carpentry studio V Růžovém sadu (In the Rose Garden) in Ořechov near Brno follows a distinctive production programme that is primarily focused on hand manufacture and which helps to increase the social status of its employees with disabilities.

The designation “The Right Toy” (founded 1994) is a collective project of three entities: Association for Toy and Play (Sdružení pro hračku a hru), Toys Association, Member of the Union of Visual Artists of the Czech Republic (Asociace hračka Unie výtvarných umělců) and Association for Pre-school Education (Asociace předškolní výchovy).

Toys awarded in 2022 are on display at the summer festival Hračkobraní at the chateau in Kamenice nad Lipou from July 12–16, 2023; afterwards they will be incorporated into the collections of the town’s Municipal Museum.