item details
Overview
This ‘Little Buffer’ chair was purchased for Mavis Walls in England in 1934. It came to New Zealand with the Walls family when they emigrated in 1938.
The ‘Little Buffer’ folding baby chair was manufactured by The Baby Scooter Car Company of London. It was designed to allow the child sitting in it to propel themselves across the floor while still safely strapped in the chair. This model has a removable tray that can be attached at the sides for mealtimes and other activities.
At around the time this chair was produced, the ideas of physician and pedagogue Maria Montessori were becoming increasingly influential not only in schools but also in the world of design. The Montessori method sought to develop the individuality of the child, and this required furniture that was of an appropriate scale, and light enough, for children to use without permanent help from adults. British advertisements from the 1930s describe the Little Buffer in these terms, suggesting for example that it is ‘a most instructive device’ which ‘gives baby confidence and makes him self-reliant’ (Britannia and Eve, 1 December 1935).
The Little Buffer chair was sold in New Zealand from the late 1920s and marketed as ‘A Revolution in the Nursery.’ According to one 1928 advertisement, doctors, nurses and parents all advocated the low chair because it kept weight off baby’s legs, prevented weak ankles, had a comfortable back, arms, and a strap making it as safe as a cot, was portable for house and garden, packed down very small, and allowed babies to explore the world months before they could toddle (Manawatu Standard, 25 September 1928).
Mavis recalls in her memoir that when the family sailed to New Zealand in 1938 her younger brother Keith, who was one year old, was often in the Little Buffer. Since then, at least 20 children have used it across four generations of the family.
References
- Penman, Heather. 2021. Unpublished notes provided to curator.
- Victoria and Albert Museum. 2000. Object record for Little Buffer, B.301-1996. https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O38578/little-buffer-childs-potty-chair-the-baby-scooter/
- Vodenova, Pavlina. 2019. History of Children’s Furniture and Interior. Innovation in Woodworking Industry and Engineering Design, 8 no. 2 (2019): 15-26.