N’UOVO in Florence, which specializes in custom furniture, mostly for
children. Certainly, for clients and architects I had to fulfill their wishes,
but never in a collaborative fashion. Alex gives me the freedom to create
and figure out the problems on my own, while still being an active partner and a creative sounding board. So, I have the best of both worlds.
A l e x I have done a fair amount of graphics work for other creative
types, trying to translate their medium into stationery, portfolios, styling,
etc. I do all the stuff needed for their work to reach the vendor, press or
customer, from florist to jeweler. How did the idea for 2nd Nature Toys originate?
Ale x I wondered why dominoes had numbers and not flowers, and
why blocks all had to be “ball,” “dog,” “truck” and not single themes
like all animals or all dogs or insects. It felt like a missed opportunity for
added learning. With that view, every game I saw became a vehicle for
me to ‘skin’ information about species into the game play.
A r i a n n a When Alex came up with the idea for a new kind of didactic
toy and game system, I was quick to jump on board, as I had found myself
to be a true toy snob. Her idea of melding science with fun, all in an
aesthetically and tactually pleasing form, was hard to resist.
What did or do you see missing in the toy and game landscapes?
Ale x Alex Wolf
Class of 1984
Founder, 2nd Nature Toys
How long have you known each other?
Ale x Wolf I am Class of ’84 and Arianna is ’85 so we did
things like go to Sky Rink together on the bus in Lower School
in 1975. Since I left to go to Exeter in 1981, we didn’t reconnect
until later when I dated a friend of Arianna’s, who had also been
my classmate Sarah Holloway’s housemate at Bowdoin. I broke
up with the boyfriend but Arianna and I stayed friends.
A r i a n n a F i o r at t i Lo r e to Because Alex was in the class
ahead of me I always knew who she was. I remember that she
was really good at gymnastics and was friends with Marina Talley
Chatterton ’84, my mother’s best friend’s daughter. Somehow,
I had always found Alex slightly intimidating until I met her again
after college. Thanks to that old friend of mine who had gone
to Browning, we became great friends. And when they broke
up, I happily kept on being friends with Alex, and not with him.
Describe any collaborative projects prior to founding the
company or even at Chapin.
A r i a n n a Before working with Alex on the game project, I
had always worked on my own. I founded a furniture company,
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First off, let me say I have adored games and well-designed children’s things since I was young. When I had my daughter, I was incredibly
frustrated with children’s toys in the nature area. What was available was
not smart, beautiful or informative. So I set out to change that. My first
efforts were not successful, but a few years later I was encouraged by a
friend to try again with a different artist, and a different angle. Since I had
originally wanted Arianna to do artwork for the animals, I approached
her to do plants and animals. I have always been a huge fan of her paintings and drawings, and her style and aesthetic as well.
Arian na With the birth of my son, I was suddenly aware of how boring and unattractive most toys were. I found the colors and shapes, even
in baby toys, “obvious” and uninteresting. Plastic toys that shrieked were
anathema to me. I found myself making cloth books, scouring museum
bookshops for postcards for him to play with, as well as making homemade play dough. As he grew, the toys on the market only got junkier.
So, open-ended toys and games that challenge the child’s creativity, while
fulfilling an aesthetic ideal, are what I found missing. What became important to me were not only toys that were well-made and attractive,
but that also didn’t dictate play. “Winning” games are off limits and rules
don’t exist.
Describe the process in which you collaborate to create each toy/
game.
Ale x I started by trying to blend the science, the art and the game
into an integral whole. For Old Maid, I used the standard game format
and used images of trees. Because the ginkgo tree is the only one in that
phylum, which in lay terms means she has no children, I decided it could
be used with a male ginkgo tree to have the game be played as Bachelor.
I hope the humor of the science and the game make the evolutionary
story of the ginkgo memorable. Once we decided on the size and format of the cards, we discussed the
scale in which Arianna was comfortable drawing. Each of our cards show
the tree, its leaf, its flower (or reproductive florescence), and fruit/seed.
Arianna, you found so many bark patterns you loved so I encouraged you
to keep drawing. The result was Bark, a bark memory game, also in the
playing card format. The two games go together nicely and show many
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features of 26 different tree species. The game can also be played as Go
Fish since there are pairs.
A r i a n n a When Alex approached me with her idea for Old Maid
based on trees, I asked myself how we could best convey the information, the science, while making the cards beautiful in their own right.
Once the first drawings were completed new ideas quickly followed. I
had the most fun drawing and studying bark for Bark, the memory game.
And the idea for a picture cube puzzle was another project that sprang
directly from the first tree drawings.
What does each partner bring to the table that the other may not?
Arianna Alex frets about every detail, every question, every problem, every D.N.A. sequence. Everything is very cerebral with her. I think
more about how things will read, how they will look and try to create an
effective, immediate, simple visual statement.
Ale x I am more of a science nerd than Arianna, whose ar t history
background is tremendous. For me, developing the science behind the
games was as big a project as the games and toys themselves. The Old
Maid game, which is still in development, teaches six characteristics of
plants in an icon system I have developed — like the periodic table, but
for botany. The botanical icons in Botani-ker, which have sister icons for
animals in Ani-maker, are being developed into iPad apps for kids. A section of Botani-ker on flower anatomy is being developed with botanists
from the Plant Ontology department at the New York Botanical Garden.
I hope to forge a similar relationship with zoologists from the American
Museum of Natural History or the Wildlife Conservation Society to verify the animal icons.
Are there challenges in working with a partner?
A l e x I am in New York and Arianna is in Florence, so distance can be
an issue in terms of getting things back and forth between us. So Arianna
draws a lot when she’s in NYC. I enjoy partnerships because I get to work
outside my own skill set. It’s liberating and empowering to have something
come to life that you can’t make on your own. I am designing the game
ideas and the features while keeping Arianna’s style in mind, so we can
incorporate it into the design of the product and enhance the concept.
Arian na I would agree that our greatest challenges are distance and
time zones. It is not always easy to work long distance and so we really
do try to make the most of my visits to New York.
What have you learned from and/or about one another through this
partnership?
Arian na I’ve learned that Alex is not only great at seeing the big picture and pursuing her goals, but that she actually revels in the minutiae,
which would discourage anyone else.
A l e x Arianna has a truly incredible eye, combined with incredible skill
for draftsmanship and composition. To be able to work with her and use
her designs is tremendous. And brainstorming together is exciting. I want
Arianna to be THE Audobon of the 21st Century.
Where do you see yourselves in a few years? Arianna Fioratti
Loreto
Class of 1985
Artist, 2nd Nature Toys
What advice would you give to current Chapin students or
those new to the workforce, particularly with regard to partnering with friends?
A l e x Having a history that goes back to girlhood with a woman is really a luxury. Expand on it and enjoy it.
Arian na Working with a friend is a reward in itself. Being
able to choose with whom you will work is a huge luxury. If
one is lucky enough to work with a friend, it is important that
your talents complement each other, rather than overlap perfectly. Having a common vision is important, but it is also important to understand what your role is in the partnership.
Ale x Making elegant, intuitive fun products. Physically: beautiful games,
toys and related products, which educate by visual pattern recognition,
and suppor t revenue. Digitally: science tools and apps that bring high
school botany and zoology classification concepts to elementary age kids,
helping them navigate the Tree of Life with the ease of Google Earth.
Arian na A creative powerhouse.
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