Piles of plushies and stuffed animals were strewn along several tables. From giraffes and unicorns to dogs and bears, students slowly dismembered them one-by-one as they turned them into victims of their creative horror.
FrankenToys made a return to the Columbia College Chicago Library as a part of Columbia’s Wicked Week programming this week, inviting students to desecrate and disassemble second-hand toys in order to create their own unique creatures.
Through activities like these, Jennifer Sauzer, head of access services and assessment, wanted the library to be seen as more than just books and resources.
“What we want to happen is for our community to rediscover what can happen, connecting with each other over the table as they say, ‘Oh give me that arm! I want that one’s face,’” Sauzer said.
While one student took the limbs off of a pink stuffed animal and put them on a T. rex with a unicorn horn, another student sewed bat wings onto a teal goat plushie.
Over the many years of running this event, Sauzer has seen countless horrifying and creative toys. One year, she had found and brought a dancing Elmo toy that was later skinned by students.
“It was the Elmo dancing, but this entirely new form,” Sauzer said. “We’re Columbia, so the flavor was added.”
For Rhyan Strick, a junior theatre arts production and practice major, this was their first time attending the event. They liked seeing how each creation was unique because of a person’s individuality.
“You can never have two people look at a giraffe and a bat and turn it into the same art piece,” said Strick.
Ava Darnell, a junior illustration major, went to last year’s FrankenToys event and created a unicorn elephant with an eye on the side of its head. This year she was back to make another odd creature.
“I like that you get to be spontaneous,” Darnell said.
For students, creating something new out of old toys took the pressure off of making something perfect.
“You could describe it as hacksaw sewing,” said Darnell. “It doesn’t have to look professional.”
Copy edited by Venus Tapang
