Renate Müller began designing and producing toys in the early 1960s as part of a program launched by the Sonneberg Technical College for Toy Design in Germany. Her large, brightly colored, ruggedly made toy animals were used in therapeutic settings for handicapped children. The toys invite interaction, even abuse as they embody the calm personalities of story-book pets who allow children to do anything they want to them. A group of these unusual pieces is currently on view at R and Company Gallery, in Tribeca.

In the introduction to the book, Renate Müller: Toys + Designs (R20th Century, 2011), gallery co-owner Evan Snyderman wrote,  “In the fall of 2005 while traveling through Germany I had a day to visit all the vintage design galleries in Köln. Digging through the storage room of one shop, I noticed a group of colorful and somewhat raggedy-looking objects way up high on a shelf. I climbed over a sofa and past a pile of lamp parts to get to them….

“Like all great design, for children or adults, there was a sophistication to these objects. They are visually graphic, made in a rough natural fabric combined with brightly colored leather handles and saddles in orange and blue. Then there was the feel of them. When I pulled one off the shelf I was surprised by the weight and the solidity of the form. These were not your average stuffed animals. They were voluminous and strong, yet soft and playful at the same time.

“The owner of the gallery informed me that the pieces were not for sale but were part of his personal collection. He told me they had been designed and made in the late 1960s by a German toy maker named Renate Müller and that at one time they could have been found in kindergarten play areas throughout Germany. After unsuccessfully trying to convince him to part with them, I left Köln that evening with only pictures in my camera and thoughts in my head of Müller's creations.”

Renate Müller in her studio, Sonneberg, Germany, 1980.

Working from her own home since taking back the rights to her designs in the early 1990s after the reunification of Germany, Müller, now in her ‘70s, chooses to work alone and has staved off countless offers from manufacturers to produce her designs for larger distribution. She talks of the strong connection she has with each piece as she hand-makes it, and the individuality each one holds in its posture or expression. She intends to keep it this way and welcomes the occasional return of well-loved creatures sent back to her for the replacement of a missing eye, ear or a general face-lift.

Renate Müller’s toy designs are on view through April 24^th at R and Company, 82 Franklin Street, NY, NY. Information.