Fans of outsider art will want to check out the new exhibit at the Providence Children’s Museum. As far as I know child-free adults are welcome at the museum, but . . . you know . . . try not to look like a creep or anything.

The Power to Play: From Trash to Treasure features toys handcrafted by children from around the world.  The charming creations poignantly illustrate children’s creativity and inventiveness and the universal importance of play in children’s development.

The playthings were crafted in countries including India, Brazil, Ethiopia and the United States and range from dolls, games and musical instruments to a variety of things that float, roll and fly.  They were constructed from materials and objects found around children’s homes and villages — bottle caps, twigs, discarded containers and cardboard, old flip-flops, fabric scraps and bits of wood, wire and string.  Some of the collection’s highlights include a tin can truck, a jump rope braided from colorful plastic bags, and a well-worn shoe turned into a car.

The toys are a selection from a traveling exhibition of more than 350 pieces collected by ChildFund International, a global child development and protection agency. Picture of crazy adorable ’shoe car’ after the jump.

Admission to museum $8.50, through January 2012, Providence Children’s Museum, 100 South Street, 273.5437

Tags: art, children

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