Next week marks an exciting moment for a small village in South Africa and the nonprofit organization Sharing to Learn.  Sharing to Learn is providing The Museum of Modern Art with toys from Makuleke, South Africa – created by hand with found materials in a tradition passed down for decades –for inclusion in its ambitious Century of the Child exhibit.

The toys, designed and handcrafted by children and educators from the village, were loaned to Sharing to Learn founder Denise Ortiz on one of her regular visits to the village where Sharing To Learn maintains libraries and sponsors an orphan mentoring program.  Ortiz, in turn, presented them to the Museum for inclusion in the exhibit.

Among the toys planned to be featured in the exhibition and accompanying catalog are eyeglasses fashioned from electrical wires, a push car made from scrap materials, and a colorful doll and a soccer ball made from bread bags. The toys are fitting inclusions in the exhibit’s dialogue on design and children; challenged by a lack of resources, the people of Makuleke have used imaginative and innovative design to transform their environment and satisfy the universal childhood needs to create and to play.

As a board member I am particularly proud of the work that Sharing To Learn is doing and very excited for them to have this moment in the design world spotlight right now. Come see for yourself!

Century of the Child: Growing by Design, 1900-2000 is on view from July 29, 2012–November 05, 2012, it brings together areas underrepresented in design history and often considered separately, including school architecture, clothing, playgrounds, toys and games, children’s hospitals and safety equipment, nurseries, furniture, and books. www.moma.org