Forget The Chocolate, I Want These In My Easter Basket!

WARNING: This post is going to come across as a cruel trick. Why? Because these ultra-cool wooden toys fashioned by Japanese artist, Takeji Nakagawa, aren't available in the USA. However, it doesn't stop me from showing you some of the amazing toys this modern-day Geppetto is making...

As described on the predominantly Japanese-language website:

Take-G toy’s is a ‘toy’ maker which mostly deals with wooden crafts hand-made by Takeji (Take-G) Nakagawa (actual toys which are sold online are restricted to Take-G blocks and zoo). My motto is to bring wooden beauty and quality into life in my own style.

I often get asked “Why do you make robots with wood?” I don’t really have an exact answer for it but I often relate my robots with ‘future’.

What do you relate future with? Cities full of metals, glasses and plastics in a SF movie???
What we really want is not that kind of future but one full of trees and something more natural. I don’t think humans can live without trees no matter what advances technology makes.

When I think of ‘future’, I cannot help thinking of ‘past’ at the same time. Trees take long time (tens and hundreds years) to grow and show us their beauty (the product of their past). I think that I have responsibilities as a craftsman and an artist of breathing new life into these trees. I have a job to link 100 years in the past and 100 years in the future through my work. This is my values toward my work.

I wish my work, which carries such values, can grab imaginations of children of the past, present and future.

Takeji even makes a way cool wooden child's chair that also transforms into a scooter.

When we're used to dealing with toys that are poisonous, violent and disposable, it's refreshing to see someone bringing this level of joy back to what toys should be. The beauty of natural wood; the respect of the past while looking towards the future; a quality product by a craftsperson passionate about their work...these amazing toys are a perfect example of the type of principles PrairieMod talks about integrating in every aspect of living--which includes principled playtime!

Check out take-g toy's website (though, be prepared to not be able to read much of it.) Maybe someday soon, we'll be able to play with these kinds of toys Stateside!

All photos copyright Takeji Nakagawa

Comments

[Common Japanese words]

Even better yet, would be if they were made out of chocolate!