PLAYWORKS: ERIN BYRNE

Workshop Introduction (in detail)

Playspaces & Playscapes

The aim of the introduction was to discuss and challenge traditional ideas about what a playspace or playscape could be, whilst encouraging children to think about real and imagined environments for play, how they could feel or what they could be made of. 

The aim of the workshop was to explore how play can be integrated into the fabric of the architecture through the medium of drawing and projecting, using the the existing environment of the ICA as a testbed.

The (powerpoint) introduction began with changing the name of the ICA to 'The Institute of PLAY/WORKS', as we were going to create a conceptual refurbishment of the existing building into a fantasy playscape for playing, discovering, pretending, climbing and relaxing, hiding, reading (the list goes on...)

We discussed a few examples of what a playspace could be, using examples showing inside/ outside, natural/ man made, preconceived and impromptu playspaces.

We asked the question 'what would you do in your playspace?' by discussing all the different things people were doing in this picture- climbing, staring, eating a scotch egg, doing make- up, chatting, jumping up and down on a see-saw... This was followed by asking the question 'what would you put in your playspace?'

We looked at Susan Hoffman Architects' interventions, at how they can have non-specific function, yet still encourage many different types of activity. They are look outs, dens, nooks, crawl spaces, hidey holes... When asked what the room in a house designed by AB Rogers (below) was, one child said it was a 'playroom' (not a bedroom as it was designed).

We then asked the question, "what could is be made of?", looking at building made of fabric, ice, trees and even clouds, such as Diller and Scofidio's Blur Buiding.

I then explained the format of the workshop: 

"We will be hijacking three spaces in the ICA by drawing over them to transform them into a fantastical playscape. Firstly, make an acetate collage from your ideas, secondly, project it onto a large poster of the room of your choice (the ICA cinema, theatre or cafe), and lastly draw our ideas together directly onto the larger poster by tracing the OHP projections."

The intention was that each time we changed the acetate collage over on the OHP- the person who created it had to explain to the others what they were thinking of when they were drew it, so they could draw it together.