The Strong Museum of Play and SSA Group challenged us to create a FUNDLE box that could hold 4-6 Strong Museum gift shop items for families to take home. The structure must also have a second use for consumers.
This was a group project with Francesca Delaney (RIT Graphic Design), Liam Huff (RIT Industrial Design), and Herman Chen (RIT Industrial Design).
Out of the 8 projects in the class, ours was chosen by a variety of disciplined judges.
Research & Goals
First, our group visited The Strong National Museum of Play, thoroughly analyzing all exhibits and collections. We took numerous photos to ensure we could revisit and reflect on the exhibits back in the classroom.
One of the standout exhibits is the Rainbow Reef & Digital Aquarium, where children can color their own fish, scan it to a monitor, and watch it come to life. This interactive experience provided significant inspiration for our project.
A particularly memorable exhibit is Reading Adventureland, described as a "life-size pop-up book." This concept resonated with our group, inspiring us to incorporate numerous pop-ups in our own design.
Our primary goals for this project were to blend functionality and customizability with an element of fun. We aimed to create an experience that the whole family could enjoy together, while also allowing children to reminisce about their visit to The Strong museum and feel eager to return!
Packaging
For our final design, we opted for a shopping bag shape. This form is not only capable of holding numerous items but is also easy to carry. The game board is attached to the inside walls of the bag and can be removed before playing. All the game pieces are stored inside the bag and are perforated for easy pop-out access.
Accessibility
Inspired by the iconic game Candy Land, our design allows players to move along the path based on color. Recognizing that over 12 million Americans are colorblind and this game is targeted toward a younger audience, we added an additional element: each color is paired with a shape. The game pieces within the package are fully colorable and customizable, echoing the interactive nature of the Rainbow Reef Exhibit. To further enhance accessibility, all text on the package is also provided in Spanish, making the game more inclusive for a wider audience.
