Robot Photo Gallery from Argentina
Robot Photo Gallery from Argentina « previous | index | next »
Robot Wind up Walking Hong Kong,no 1079. In Box 
 
The Buenos Aires Toy Museum is an integral cultural project that was born over 10 years ago. Bob Frassinetti has been ever since, his alma mater and inventor. Thanks to the now globalize world, provided by the Internet, we have been able to build the first virtual Toy Museum of Argentina. All we had at that point was our will to share the amazing world of toys and games we were discovering at the time. Argentine toys of all times, the stories behind them, the stories they had been part of, were coming back to life every time we found a new item in a toy-shop, fair or market. Back then, Bob was mainly working as an art and antiques dealer. His son Christian was only 5, and the thought of developing an idea, a place, in which they could have fun, enjoy a moment and grow together, began to grow stronger in him. At one point, one of the father-son weekends, they were walking thru a flea market, and they bumped into a wonderfully crafted antique toy. To Bob's surprise, they both were touched and amazed by the item. He bought the item and they both played together for hours. Vintage toys were the answer! That was how the project of the Buenos Aires Toy Museum began. During its early days, the museum was both an excuse for quality parenting time as well as thorough hunt for antique toys and games of all times made or found in Argentina. What had began as an anecdotic finding was soon followed by many others. The individual findings began to come together as a truly interesting collection, large, top quality and very amusing. Each finding brought along a story together with the item... It soon appeared clear that vintage toys were much more than antiques. These were design items, they expressed in their motives, shapes, colors and technology a specific cultural moment, a moment in history. This was an amazing discovery and Bob, so fond of his collection and museum project, gathered together a team of enthusiastic social sciences students to work with him in the development of the museum. The BA Toy Museum was recovering wonderful toys from the pass of time and from the darkness of oblivion, while at the same time it was working on a broader research and cultural project that aimed to reconstruct their history and story in the Argentine society. The online museum in which the items were shown and exhibited began to work also as an online specialized site for antique toy lovers, were we published research works and papers, as well as interviews and insightful information on the history and stories those toys had brought to our attention. This was an important turning point in the Museum's history, for we discovered a whole new meaning for those wonderful toys and games as we unveiled their history. Our development in terms of private collection and research work is growing even today. We're pioneers in this field in Argentina and in many ways in Latin America as well. The international collector's community has not only recognized our work thru emails and phone calls, but also by means of specialized publications, online and paper magazines, articles and interviews in United States, England, France and Italy. In Argentina, several of the most prestigious local news papers such as La Nacion, Clarin, InfoBAE and La Razon have interviewed Bob, local radio shows and TV shows also have worked together with us, in recent years. At the moment we're working on a new project together with the British Arts Center for a July show in which we'll be exhibiting some of our collection, together with research work, toy related artists work and paintings and live shows for children and parents to enjoy. The Buenos Aires Toy Museum has developed until now with no financial aid of any sort. We love what we do, and that's why we've come so far. We're always aiming for more, and that's why our goal for this year is to finally have a real show room in which the Museum can monthly present exhibitions, lectures and special events for the local and international collectors community, toy lovers, enthusiast and curious visitors. The Buenos Aires Toy Museum;