Not currently on display at the V&A

Furniture Set

1946-1984 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

British toymaker Susan Wynter (1923- 2013) started making objects from wood when she was eight years old. Growing up, she lived in London near a billiard table maker where she would use the wooden off-cuts and leftover green baize to create her own objects. As Susan grew older and had children, she began to design toys for the nursery, focusing on both function and education. Through this new approach to toymaking, Susan Wynter began to gain international fame, exhibiting at the London Design Centre, the Venice Biennale, and in various trade fairs in British Pavillions.

Her business, the Toy Trumpet, began as a small toy shop in St. Ives where Susan started designing and making high quality wooden toys. Through her toys Susan was keen to promote exploration through and also designed toys for children with special needs. These toys were then sold to stores like Harrods and Fortnum and Mason. In the late 1960s Susan moved the business to Essex and settled in Brightlingsea where she employed local people. The company grew exponentially, providing toys for major companies like James Galt and the Educational Supply Association.

This furniture set echoes the balance between functionality and entertainment that Susan Wynter achieves with her toys. The simplicity and bright colours are a staple of Susan's and this furniture set exemplifies this style. She promotes a creative approach to manipulating and playing with a furniture set by allowing a colourful variety of objects.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 31 parts.

  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
  • Furniture Set
Materials and techniques
Painted wood; plastic
Brief description
31 piece furniture set, wood, made by Susan Wynter, England 1946-1984
Physical description
pieces of furniture of assorted colours:
- 2 basins, one dark pink and one light pink. They are flat on the back and rounded on the front, and they’ve got one plastic tap attached by a nail
- 2 pink bathtubs with two plastic tubs attached by a nail, one of them has been just partially painted and has a rough end in its concave part
- 2 pink toilets, of which one of them has carved circle with a dot in the centre as its opening, and the other one has a hole whose interior hasn’t been painted or finished
- 2 beds in natural wood colour with headboards
- -3 wardrobes, one dark blue with two red dots as handles, one a lighter blue shade with red handles too, and another one natural wood colour. The dark blue one has been marked with pencil depicting the shape of a door on its back and left front door. The lighter blue has a line on its back that has been drawn with what appears to be yellow marker.
-1 dresser stool in natural wood colour with a cork top
-2 coffee tables, one orange and a larger one natural wood colour
-2 easy chairs, one orange and one green
-1 tv, wooden colour witht outlined screen and three dots as buttons, all with silver paint
- 1 cooker with oven, white with two red burners, three red dots as the controls and a red dot as a handle for the oven.
- 2 kitchen sinks, double white sinks with two drawers and two cupboards and two cupboards underneath the drawers; each of them has a painted red dot as a handle. The sinks have plastic taps attached by a nail
-1 table, yellow, formed by two pieces, the top and a block as the base
-1 fridge, with the shape of freezer on the top, and with a dot as a handle on the right upper corner
-1 couch, orange
-6 chairs, one red, two orange, one green, one blue and one natural wood
-1 drawer cabinets, natural wood, with shelves on the upper half and two drawers and two cupboards on the lower half. Each drawer and cupboard door has a handle depicted by a dot.
- 1 chest of drawers, blue with a headboard. The headboard has an edge painted with a silver line, and the drawer has two handles made with two silver dots.

Credit line
Given by Susan Murray
Subjects depicted
Summary
British toymaker Susan Wynter (1923- 2013) started making objects from wood when she was eight years old. Growing up, she lived in London near a billiard table maker where she would use the wooden off-cuts and leftover green baize to create her own objects. As Susan grew older and had children, she began to design toys for the nursery, focusing on both function and education. Through this new approach to toymaking, Susan Wynter began to gain international fame, exhibiting at the London Design Centre, the Venice Biennale, and in various trade fairs in British Pavillions.

Her business, the Toy Trumpet, began as a small toy shop in St. Ives where Susan started designing and making high quality wooden toys. Through her toys Susan was keen to promote exploration through and also designed toys for children with special needs. These toys were then sold to stores like Harrods and Fortnum and Mason. In the late 1960s Susan moved the business to Essex and settled in Brightlingsea where she employed local people. The company grew exponentially, providing toys for major companies like James Galt and the Educational Supply Association.

This furniture set echoes the balance between functionality and entertainment that Susan Wynter achieves with her toys. The simplicity and bright colours are a staple of Susan's and this furniture set exemplifies this style. She promotes a creative approach to manipulating and playing with a furniture set by allowing a colourful variety of objects.
Collection
Accession number
B.64:1 to 31-2014

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Record createdJuly 19, 2014
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