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

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

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

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

objects and play by thomas forsyth

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thomas forsyth: http://www.thomasforsyth.co.uk