Toy cow
Classification(s):
Wood
Date: c.1951 - 1976
Dimensions:
99 × 130 mm (9.9 × 13 cm)
Medium: Wood, textile, string, varnish
Object number: W143A
Place of Production:England
DescriptionWooden toy cow, made by toy maker Sam Smith. Made in England. The cow is varnished and painted red, it has a decorative collar around its neck and a plaited straw tail.
"Sam Smith, England" stamped on the underside.
"Sam Smith, England" stamped on the underside.
ProvenanceThis object was originally acquired for the Inner London Education Authority’s (ILEA) ‘Circulating Design Scheme’ collection.
The collection was instigated by the London Country Council (later the Greater London Council) and the Council of Industrial Design (COID). The collection’s original purpose was concerned with the teaching and dissemination of modern, ‘good design’.
The collection was established in 1951/52 as the ‘Experiment in Design Appreciation’, later renamed the ‘Circulating Design Scheme’.
The Circulating Design Scheme lent boxed showcases to London schools. The showcases contained handling objects, material samples and interpretation on a specific subject.
COID withdrew its involvement in the Scheme in 1957. After which time, it was managed exclusively by the London County Council from 1957-1963.
After the administrative restructuring of London authorities, the Scheme was jointly managed by the Greater London Council and the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) from 1963 – 1976.
The Scheme was operational until 1976 when the collections were withdrawn from circulation. ILEA was abolished in the late 1980s and the collection was donated to Camberwell College of Arts in 1989/90.
ILEA was responsible for secondary and tertiary education in the inner London boroughs, this included Camberwell.
The collection was instigated by the London Country Council (later the Greater London Council) and the Council of Industrial Design (COID). The collection’s original purpose was concerned with the teaching and dissemination of modern, ‘good design’.
The collection was established in 1951/52 as the ‘Experiment in Design Appreciation’, later renamed the ‘Circulating Design Scheme’.
The Circulating Design Scheme lent boxed showcases to London schools. The showcases contained handling objects, material samples and interpretation on a specific subject.
COID withdrew its involvement in the Scheme in 1957. After which time, it was managed exclusively by the London County Council from 1957-1963.
After the administrative restructuring of London authorities, the Scheme was jointly managed by the Greater London Council and the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) from 1963 – 1976.
The Scheme was operational until 1976 when the collections were withdrawn from circulation. ILEA was abolished in the late 1980s and the collection was donated to Camberwell College of Arts in 1989/90.
ILEA was responsible for secondary and tertiary education in the inner London boroughs, this included Camberwell.
NotesSam Smith (born Alan Verner Smith) was born in Southampton and was the son of a steam ship captain, spending most of his childhood around boats in the seaside town. His childhood fascinations with the theatre of the harbour and of the sea no doubt influenced his work. Smith studied at the Bournemouth School of Art, followed by the Westminster School of Art, London. As an aspiring painter, he was an admirer of artists such as Eric Ravilious and Paul Nash - but struggling to find work as a painter he took a job as a gallery assistant at The Little Gallery in London. Smith began making small wooden objects to be sold in the gift shop of the gallery, but as war broke out his craft work and toy making was interrupted. In 1935 he exhibited his work at The Little Gallery, and after meeting Henry Rothschild in 1945 he exhibited at The Primavera Gallery, London. Smith’s work proved popular and he expanded production to supply toys to department stores.