Textile toy – double sided pillow, 1978-1980

Textile toys by Ľudmila Fintorová, a highly valued contribution to the collections of Slovak Design Museum, were donated to the museum by the author herself. Fintorová started creating textile toys in the second half of 1970s during her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts. Her textile pillows for the youngest children are the most unique contribution in this field. The simple shape of a pillow, formed only by pulling strings, is combined with fabrics of various colours, creating unmistakable expressions of animals – foxes, hippos, elephants, and clowns. Usually, the pillows were complemented with a double-sided head loosely stitched onto the pillow to allow movement and to show a different expression and color on each side. Fintorová was one of the first authors, who were trying to create interactive textile toys, which could also be made at home according to prepared patterns. She often recycled fabric scraps and old clothes. She also tried to design a textile toy for a traditional manufacturer Mlaď Handlová. However, as the final product did not correspond to the original idea and design, Fintorová canceled the cooperation.