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The colorful, skillfully made, and wildly inventive toys on display in Playing Around: Toys Designed by Artists hark back to the days before plastic and mass production, when all toys were handmade and, whether simple or elaborate, engaged the imagination of both maker and user.

In the early 1970s, the Arkansas Arts Center initiated an annual exhibition of toys designed by artists. Inspired by Alexander Calder's circus figures of the late 1920s and early 1930s, this exhibition was launched to stimulate the imagination of both children and adults and to engage them with toys of whimsy, delight, and good craftsmanship. Each year the museum has acquired works from the exhibition and now has over 200 in its collection.

Organized by Alan DuBois, Curator of Decorative Arts at the Arkansas Arts Center, Playing Around features 50 of the best and most interesting pieces from this unique collection. The toys vary in theme, materials, and utility, and many are functional. Some wind up, while others work like the automatons popular in the first half of the 20th century. Some toys are made from found objects; others are meticulously crafted from clay, fiber, glass, metal, and wood.

Playing Around is sure to appeal to adults as well as children. Also planned for the exhibition is a collection of hands-on toys, giving visitors the chance to play with toys like the ones they are viewing. The exhibition also suggests many educational links, such as toy-making activities including creating simple puppets, marionettes, airplanes, and toys made from found objects.