100 Objects from Century of the Child

Renate Müller. Modular indoor play area. 1985

Using a limited material vocabulary of jute, leather, and wood, Müller creates high-quality therapeutic toys and environments for active play, in handmade designs that are simple, combining robust forms (ideal for strength, balance, and motor exercises) with refined tactile qualities, bright colors, and straps or handles to encourage physical engagement. She started training in toy design in 1964 and soon launched a career in design for children with special needs, establishing her own studio in 1978. Her series of burlap beasts, which she promoted as “coarse but cute,” became popular in kindergartens and hospitals throughout the region. In her unique modular indoor playground, stick-puppet characters can be used to secure loose cushions into endless arrangements of playful structures.

Learn more at MoMA.org/centuryofthechild