- Randy Regier: Artist Statement 2006 In his short essay The Cultural History of Toys, written in 1928, writer and literary critic Walter Benjamin wrote that, "toys cannot bear witness to any autonomous separate existence, but rather are a silent signifying dialogue between them [children] and their nation." Whether the dialogue is still "silent" is arguable, but Benjamin's articulation of the connection of children to their nation through their toys is as relevant today as in 1928, if not more so regarding our current state of grossly amplified production, marketing and consumption. Interpretation of the dialogue via the study of playthings and their packaging is the impetus behind my current work.