It was a long time ago that i first found a toy by Paya, the spanish TinToy factory whose tin toys are now collected all over the world. Unfortunately it was not a “first” edition but a reedition of one of their most famous toys “The General Omnibus”. It was the first i found and since i have been searching for these wonderful toys. They are made of tin , but within these limitations, almost every subject was possible. Cars, planes, motorbikes, racing cars, busses, street sweepers…..and all made by Paya. Nostalgic feelings could not have been the origin of this fascination, because these were originally made well before the time i was born, but there is something different that appeals. The colors and the subjects and of course the fact that moving winding mechanisms are used within these tin toys make these similar to moving sculptures. like to ones made by Jean Tinguely. Pull away the tin plates from the toy and then there is a raw simple winding mechanism which can be wound and which is frequently used in modern art to move the subjects (for example in the moving sculptures from the sixties). Springs and winding mechanisms, the same as in the Paya toys, are used to, make parts and even complete sculptures, move. In any case PAYA is well worth collecting and if by any chance you are traveling the region of Alicante in Spain…visit la Casa Modernista in Novelda. On the top floor you will find a very large collection of TinToys of which many are made by Paya.
