british designer thomas forsyth’s latest works explore the gap between spontaneous/creative and rule-bound forms of play. through designs such as ‘drawing tops’ and ‘chess?’ forsyth creates an excuse to interact with objects in the way that children do.
drawing tops
‘a spinning-top, that uses a pen as the spindle, represents many of the core ideas behind my
current work. it is recognisable, un-intimidating, and invites people to interact with objects that
can lead to unpredictable results, or an emergent property. simply through indulging in the
enjoyable process of spinning the top a bi-product is created. where the pen marks the surface,
a beautiful map of the experience and events that have occurred is produced. I am able to draw,
but I am not particularly talented at it and yet found that, through the interaction with these objects,
I have created drawings that I am more proud of than any I have done before.‘ TF
chess?
‘this is my mischievous challenge on the rigidly structured squares of the chessboard.
I have introduced new components to the board, some of which may only emerge during play.
this encourages players to communicate and have creative input rather than simply follow
pre-determined rules. you can play spontaneously, or those who want a more strategic game
can negotiate rules before the game commences. this all means that players don’t need to know
how to play chess in order to participate.’TF
more
thomas forsyth: http://www.thomasforsyth.co.uk
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