My name is Danielle Begnaud and I’m a designer, researcher, and inventor based in New York City. I founded Benyo Studio in 2020, where I use the story-telling capabilities of objects in order to encourage gratitude, laughter, and light in the every day.

Spanning toy and game design, collaborative design practices, as well as writing and illustrating children’s books, my work focuses on sparking imagination, creativity, and joy in others. Laughter, gratitude, and imagination are tools that help us navigate difficulty and uncertainty, and I hope to nurture these ideas and abilities in others, especially children.

I have partnered with organizations in the United States, Canada, China, India, Vietnam, Poland, and England to design toys, products, and exhibits. I have also presented my work and design research in international forums in Europe and the United States.

I have designed and facilitated collaborative design workshops, working together with children to design toys, games, and experiences. From long-term collaborations to remote co-design experiments, sharing in the creative process and inspiring children to create fuels my work. I am currently working to extend these co-design workshops to school visits, museum programs, and online co-design channels. 

I hold a Master's Degree in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute and a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin. I currently work as a toy designer at Bark and teach in the Industrial Design department at Pratt Institute.