Photo courtesy of Pauline Dolovich

ROM: Toy Soldiers

Overview

The miniatures in the Toy Soldier Collection come to life in this wonderfully charming display that encourages visitors to enter a red toy box and explore scenes of soldiers’ past.

Client: Royal Ontario Museum
Project: Toy Soldier Collection
Size: 115 sq. ft.

Scope: Exhibit Design - Children, Exhibit Design - Culture
Location: Toronto, ON, CA
Year Completed: 2019

Impact

Figurines on display: 2,500

The
Goal

The Museum asked R&P to develop exhibition casework and a multimedia interactive designed to display as many of the 5,000 Britains Ltd. soldiers as possible from the Henry N.R. Jackman Toy Soldier Collection. The priority was a design directed at a young audience, rather than the more expected historical enthusiasts. The small artifact rich gallery is presented in a way that connects with visitors and allows a close up view of the collection. The goal of the interactive audiovisual piece was to highlight the collection and show the historical manufacturing process through archival footage while strategically targeting the younger audience.

Photo courtesy of Natalie Carroll

The
Design

Playful and immersive, an impressive array of 2,500 toy soldiers in regimental stance showcased in brightly lit casework emphasized the scope and range of the collection. Each soldier is involved in an action, whether riding on horseback, fighting in formation or marching in a coronation parade.

The message that toy soldiers were toys first and later became collectibles is reinforced in the charm of the design. The tiny gallery is reminiscent of a little toy store, referencing the red boxes and artwork, which originally housed Britains’ toys, bright red colour and soldier uniforms highlight the space.

The large-scale interactive media emphasized play by asking visitors to add toy soldier regiments of their own to create a parade. The soldiers then come alive with stop-motion animation, marching out of the touchscreen console and onto the large wall projection where they joyfully parade around a children’s bedroom. Marching band music plays, and visitors are prompted to add more soldiers as well as a dinosaur, astronaut and giraffe—emphasizing the idea that play is about imagination, and fun is not bound by rules of regimental history.

The
Result

This new micro-gallery delivered on the Client team’s key objective as a visually engaging and child-focused display. The aim was to include the fun and whimsy of the play we all remember from childhood while respecting military history, without focusing on militarism or warfare. The team chose to avoid traditional object labels in favor of an interactive experience combined with a flexible, open storage type of display.

Since opening, the gallery space has been filled with families. The mood is “delight,” with frequent interaction between the collection and children, their caregivers, as well as passionate toy soldier collectors.

ROM: Toy Soldiers

Photo courtesy of Pauline Dolovich

Client: Royal Ontario Museum
Project: Toy Soldier Collection
Size: 115 sq. ft.
Scope: Exhibit Design - Children, Exhibit Design - Culture
Location: Toronto, ON, CA
Year Completed: 2019

Overview

The miniatures in the Toy Soldier Collection come to life in this wonderfully charming display that encourages visitors to enter a red toy box and explore scenes of soldiers’ past.