V&A Museum, London
Play in the Pandemic is an interactive exhibition that celebrates children’s creativity, ingenuity, and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The exhibition invites visitors to explore how children used play and creativity to navigate a challenging time
Project: Play in the Pandemic
Client: V&A Museum Digital
In collaboration with Episod Studio, we created a fully illustrated virtual origami house, where visitors can interact with objects that represent various activities children engaged in during lockdown. The design embraces a handmade, collage-inspired aesthetic, giving the virtual space a tactile, imperfect quality that feels rooted in the real world. This approach brings warmth and authenticity to the experience, mirroring the resourceful, creative spirit of children during the pandemic.
The branding and colour palette follow this aesthetic, incorporating paper cuts, hand-drawn illustrations, and colours inspired by sugar paper. This cohesive design language extended to downloadable activity sheets, allowing visitors to bring the exhibition's hands-on, creative vibe into their own homes.
The result is a playful and engaging experience that invites reflection on the role of creativity in times of uncertainty, offering a sense of connection and inspiration through craft and exploration.
“Marcus Walters was our only choice for this recent project. His approach to this work was always positive, flexible, and inspired. Marcus has worked seamlessly with many different stakeholders to create a body of work that surpassed all our expectations. His illustrations for this exhibition are engaging, delightful and sophisticated and have considered the access needs of a range of potential audiences.”
Katy Canales, Exhibition Producer, V&A Museum