The very latest digital technology, as we have all discovered to our cost, has a horrible habit of rapidly becoming defunct. The upcoming generation of mini photographers won’t thank you for last week’s, never mind last decade’s, hand-me-down devices. The retro medium-format cameras and Instamatics appear to have some mileage, but can they survive the gruelling social media schedule? Maybe we should all go back to basics and focus instead on Twig Creative’s Pixie camera.
This is not strictly speaking a working piece of kit. It has knobs to twist, buttons to push and a viewfinder to turn, but its parts are carved entirely from wood (solid and sustainable alder). But this is precisely where its charm lies. Twig Creative, a designer/maker duo from Salt Lake City, are famed for their deconstructions of common objects, and here they swap batteries and plastic for imagination and a tactile natural frame.
Giving us a nostalgic nudge towards the simpler life, the Pixie is intended as a wholesome digital detox for kids, and as a directional design for adult collectors. It’s also available in seven different pastel hues, something the manufacturers of (soon to be usurped) monotone DSLRs aimed at grown-ups could learn a thing or two from.
Aspiring Baileys and Beatons will not build prize-winning portfolios with the Pixie, but while there are trees to climb and mud pies to make, what better timeless toy to capture childhood’s grand adventures – and not a screen in sight.
www.scoutandcokids.com
