Portuguese company KWY.studio collaborated with art studio Superflex and local schoolchildren to create a series of five play sculptures in pink marble in Billund, Denmark.
Structures called “play contracts” are intended to “understand children’s thinking about play”.
Each of the five small marble structures created for Danish Children’s Capital includes covered areas, steps and walkways to reimagine how adults and children interact with the landscape.
“Most [play areas] are designed and built based on what adults think about children and how they should behave,” explains Superflex.
“With Play Contract, the balance of power has shifted and now it’s the kids’ turn to create a fun space for themselves and adults,” he continued.
“What kind of playground equipment should be in such a playground? What playground do they want to have when they grow up?
The play structures were designed in a workshop where 122 schoolchildren built models from pink LEGO bricks.
The models were then analyzed to determine a range of shapes such as gates, amphitheatres, and towers, as well as a range of suggested uses such as climbing, swinging, sitting, sliding, and jumping, to inform the final design.
“The process was designed to produce unique results from the child model while retaining everyone’s ideas,” said KWY.studio.
“All models are carefully tracked, and numerous combinations are stacked on top of each other and combined into new configurations.”
“In the end, it seems that each model of each child makes up a city, the parts of which have been carefully revealed to become a new eternal future,” he continued.
The studio built five buildings in pink marble to create a “timeless” feel, aimed at evoking a sense of curiosity about who designed the buildings and why.
“Visit the quarry and workshop to understand how the material is used, preserving both natural marks and man-made processing flaws,” the studio said.
“Finishing has been kept to a minimum, while still retaining much of the history of these large and impressive rock formations.”
Other recent playground and playscape projects include a playground in Amsterdam, a minimalist animal sculpture by toy designer Luca Boscardine, and a playground in New York with repurposed concrete waves. The circuit breaker is painted sky blue.
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Post time: Sep-26-2022