City as Playground by Janet Wu
Bachelors of Arts in Land Economics National Chengchi University, 2014 Submitted to in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Architecture at the Wentworth Institute of Technology, April 2017
.......................................................................... Janet Wu Department of Architecture
.......................................................................... Certified by Penn Ruderman Thesis Supervisor
.......................................................................... Accepted by Kelly Hutzell Director of Graduate Program Š2017 Janet Wu. All rights reserved. The author hereby grants to Wentworth Institute of Technology permission to reproduce and to publicly distribute copies of this thesis document in whole or in part using paper, electronic, and any medium now known or hereafter created. |1
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I, .........................................................................., am aware of the serious nature of plagiarism and of the fact that it includes design concepts, images, drawings and other representations beyond the written word. I will not intentionally use someone else’s work without acknowledgment and will not represent someone else’s work as my own. Signature.......................................................................... Date......................................................
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Acknowledgement I would first like to thank to all the professors and friends at Wentworth, who have taught and helped me during this architecture journey. Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to my parents, sisters and grandmother for providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement throughout the years of study and pursuing my dream. Most importantly, I would like to thank my loving and supportive boyfriend, Daniel . This accomplishment would not have been possible without them. Thank you.
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Fg. 01 Persuasive PLAY Play alters how people interact with each other and further brings them closer in the city .
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Abstract ___10 Thesis statement Keywords Argument Relevance
Why Play? ___18 Precedent Study Play Observation
Literature Review ___28 Introduction How City Transforms The Way Humans Act And Perceive How Play Affects Social Function Of Building Healthy Quality Of Life How Urban Fabrics Provide Interaction Between People And Their Miliue Conclusion
Design as Research ____46 Methods Site of Play Tectonics of Play System of Play Scales of Play Playscale Catalogue
Design Process ___74 Probe Testing Site Play Prototype City Maze Interactive Surface
Design Outcome ___96 Site Method and Criteria Playcode Post Construction Installation Building Code for Play Playable Winter Street
Reflection & Critical Evaluation ___136
Bibliography ___140
Abstract Thesis statement Keywords Argument Relevance
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Abstract |
Key Terms |
This work proposes a solution for the lack of interactions between people and the city because of the fast-paced urban lifestyles. In order to redevelope the connections between city dwellers and built artifacts, play is the design-centric of this proposal. Imagining the integration of play elements into the existing surroundings, this project tests and explores the material artifacts and immaterial stimuli. It links people to the complex and systemic features of urban space. The goal is to develop a system of ‘playcode,’ which can be applicable to any urban conditions. It brings people closer through play and interacting with playful and playable urban contexts. Further, it redevelops the image of the city.
Urban Space Urban space is a dynamic system, which composes of physical built fabrics (buildings, street furniture, etc), immaterial stimuli (light, smell, sound, color, etc), all kinds of humans, and different types of interactions and connections (between people and people, between people to the environment, between buildings and surroundings, etc). Urban Playground Integrate play elements into urban fabrics. Playground should not be limited to designated space and children. Urban playground is meant for every citizens to involve and redevelop their urban memories through play. Persuasive Play Construct a playful ambiance and a sense of play in a built space. It captivates people’s attention and further triggers the action of play. Playcode Playcode is a system that regulates building code and zoning. The system provides a safe and unexpected playable space. It can happen either in the building exterior/interior or urban open space. Social Interaction Social Interaction is an exchange process, which people act and react to those around them.
Fg. 02 Los Angeles Street Art by Banksy The witty artwork by Banksy represnets the idea of parking space transfromed into a park for kids.
Abstract | 11
Concept Stat
Due to the cities losing connectio surroundings. PL socially since we by implanting th for connecting r people to their e idea of implanti playfulness buil their surroundin
Thesis Prep II: Design as Research
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Play
Thesis Statement |
Argument |
Play is a catalyst to form social networks in the daily and overlooked environments and further redevelops a new perception of the city image.
The lack of social interaction in the city increases because of the built environments’ intensity and the fast-paced of urban lifestyles. Children learn how to interact and be friends with others through play. Play is about social interaction, about bringing people together and giving them a permission to think about their surroundings differently. Playing in the surroundings, they develop a deeper relationship with others and anonymous built artifacts. Play is the designcentric of this project. Analyzing people’s unintentional play with built fabrics, and noting those potential play features are the first phase of designing city as a playground. The ultimate goal is to develop a systematic playable design, play-code, which offers various scenarios for the city.
Fg. 03 Playable Urban Fabrics The individuality of each part of the city is isolated from one another. The element of play catalyzes the connections between people and their environments.
Abstract | 13
Fg. 04 Street as a Playground The idea of playcode is zoning the space that allows for play. For example, streets become a playground in a certain time. A busy street becomes a safe zone for people to have fun and do all kinds of activities.
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Relevance | Connect people by playing in the anonymous concrete jungles. The activity of play not only bonds people together as a community but also reconstructs their memories of these overlooked built artifacts. In order to implement play into everyday life, the system, playcode, is the main design concept of this thesis project. It alters the existing urban fabrics through building code and zoning and makes urban fabrics become persuasive and playable. Cities can create their own characteristics and ambiance through this system. Playcode will renew urban memories (landscapes), human scale (texture) and place appropriation (affection). The program of play brings joys, happiness and playfulness to the anonymous and overlooked built fabrics. This encourages play to become a habit and a part of everyday life. While playing with interactive built structures, social interaction and a sense of community will be established. The social networks connect through physical and visual interaction. The benefits of play are countless. Play should be everywhere and for everyone. The system of playcode will allow kids, youth, adults, elderly to interact with these overlooked everyday urban environments. It is
not only structurally fun, and playable but also conceptually fun, playful, and meaningful. Therefore, the goal of this proposal is to create an opportunity, which makes people play with their overlooked urban space, and further develops relationships between themselves and the anonymous urban contexts. These interactions and connections gradually elevate a quality of life in the city.
Abstract | 15
Why Play? Precedent study Play observation
Fg.05 Parti diagram of connecting citizens through street furniture to renew city image.
Hello Lamp Post connects people by interacting with everyday urban objects, such as mail boxes, lamp posts, trees, etc. Assign personalities to these objects by combing with game and text message system. People talk to theme with their phones and the data would be collected. People not only just interact with these anonymous objects but also talk to strangers. This semi-virtual social interaction alters humans’ perspective of their everyday life and environments.
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Fg.06 Concept diagram of creating social interaction through interacting with overlooked built artifacts in the city.
Fg. 07 Hello Lamp Post utuilized overlooked objects to activate social interaction.
Hello Lamp Post is a game-like design by assigning human characteristics to the overlooked and existing infrastructure. People interact with urban fabrics via SMS platform. This encourages people to leave located messages and exchanges their stories within these assigned street furniture. The goal is to give city dwellers a permission to see their environment differently, and renew their image of the city.
Precedent | Hello Lamp Post Architects | PAN Studio Cities | Birstol, Tokyo, Austin
The walking experience in the city is like a diary. People recall what happened last time when they were there.
Why Play? | 19
Fg.08 Swing Time integrates the nature of swing and technology to transform the image of the neighborhood.
Swing Time aims to activate outdoor space, and social interaction by integrating technology and the nature of swings. The project provides different perspectives of playgrounds and urban park life. The embedded LED light not only attracts people’s curiosity but also ignites neighborhood’s night life.
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Precedent | Swing Time Architects | Höweler + Yoon City | Boston, MA
Swing Time neighborhood figuratively.
lights up literally
the and
Light The color of the light is determined by speed and motion of the swing. The colorful illumination further creates persuasive play. The colorful illumination lights up the urban environment not only literally but also figuratively. Size Various sizes of swings provide more opportunities for different groups of users. The smallest swings provide for one person to use, and others can push. The nature of swings encourages interaction through pushing. The larger ones are for two people. It creates more intimate interaction within the swings.
Form Unlike traditional shapes of the swings, the circular geometry allows laying and further creates a semi-private space within the swing. This gives the different representation of the nature of swings.
Fg.09 Light diagram shows the color is determined by the speed.
Fg.10 Different sizes of swings allow one to two people to share the swing and further develop various social interaction.
Fg.11 The form of the swing creates a semi-private space for users.
Why Play? | 21
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Play Observation | Shanghai, China Places | 1933 Slaughterhouse, Bollards at M50, Humble Adminstrator Garden, Suzhoug In order to implement the idea of play into urban environment, this frame studies existing urban fabrics and how they affect people’s behaviors. During the trip in Shanghai, China, unintentional play is the most distinguished observation. The built environment generates a sense of persuasive play. Bollards and the nature landscape are the typical examples of persuasive play. Humans naturally are inclined to nature. It is because it provides infinitive imagination. Bollards change the street condition, which provides a safe zone for play. Besides, the forms of bollards allow people to climb and jump on.
Fg.12 Air bridges and ramps at 1933 Slaughters generate a game-like hide and seek and a sense of maze in the interior space. Why Play? | 23
Bollards at M50 The intention of the bollards is blocking vehicles to enter streets. Bollard’s heights and shapes allow people to step on, sit on, and lean on. They change the street conditions, which allows the activity of play to happen. Humble Administrator Garden Chinese garden landscape design uses natural elements such as rocks to demarcate spaces. The transition becomes a trail, which attracts people to climb on instead of walking on the designated pathway. This implies people are attracted to the playfulness generated by natural landscapes. 1933 Slaughterhouse Different sizes of air bridges form various atrium. This allows many interactions to happen in the space. The interactions are not only people in this mazy interior space but also the verticality of interactions between people in different elevations. The circulation system through ramps and air bridges generates a sense of exploration and maze.
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Fg.13 The bollards trigger people’s unintentional play because of its shape, height and the street condition.
Fg.14 Nature landscape formulates a sense of play. The natural rock path, which ignites humans to climb and walk on.
Fg.15 The circulation system through different sizes of ramps and air bridges creates a sense of exploration.
Why Play? | 25
Literature Review Introduction How city transforms the way humans act and perceive How play affects social function of building healthy quality of life How urban fabrics provide interaction between people and their miliue Conclusion
Introduction | Social interaction in the urban environment has been transformed by the fast-paced lifestyles and the intensity of built surroundings. Industrialization, digital world, and lack of human scale built environments have changed the way people live and the way they interact with each other. Long work days in cities reduce recreation. This happens not only to adults but also to children. Children play less because of the competitive education environment and the decrease of play space in cities. The lack of play and recreation with external pressure and intensity of the surroundings leads to mental health issues and affects children’s mental development. A research Professor of psychology at Boston College, Peter Gray, establishes the theory that children need free play, an idea adopted widely in psychology text book. Gray claims that the decline of children’s play increases the problem of psychopathology such as anxiety, depression, etc.1 Play has an important role in developing human’s neurological growth for a cognitively flexible and a socially skilled brain.2 People learn how to deal with unexpected challenges through play. Gray says that children are designed to play by natural selection.3 However, the importance of play is undeniable to our existence. In an exhibit designed to explore our diminishing spaced of play, the BSA introduces the ideas of David Derbyshire, author of “How Children Lost the Right to Roam in
Four Generations,” play space has been gradually decreasing in our surroundings.4 Although, the built environment has been declining for play, it can be argued that our need for play has increased. The following literature review is structured with various ideas from several publications for supporting the interrelationship among urban fabrics, play and social interaction. The key topics presents: how urban environments transform the way people act and perceive, how play affects a social functions for building a healthy quality of life, and how built environments provide interaction between people and their milieu. These topics create a need for an environment, which transforms people’s perception and further develop a new cognitive image of the city through play. However, where and how should we integrate the element of play to our everyday life?
1 Gray, Peter. “ The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play 3 (2011): p.443 2 Ibid 3 lbid
4 Derbyshire, David. “How Children Lost the Right to Roam in Four Generations.” Daily Mail, October 11, 2007. Accessed November 04, 2016. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-462091/How-children-lost-rightroam-generations.html
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How City Transforms The Way Humans Act And Perceive | The Lack of Recreation Work is indispensable, since mankind need to earn money to secure the necessities for life.1 However, the arrival of Industrial Revolution causes people to work longer hours. Professor Juliet Schor at Boston College studies the issues of work, consumption and sustainability. Schor’s publication “The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure” claims contemporary Americans working longer hours, which leads to losing time for leisure and recreation.2 She explains three reasons that increase overwork in the United States: the structure of capitalism, the rising standards and expectation of domestic life for social status, and the materialism with the cycle of earn and spend.3 These require long hours work to support the way of life in the US. In her study, she claims that Americans are inclined to choose additional income over leisure. This phenomenon exists not only in US; one in five workers in Europe is also involved in long work days now. The extended hours of work have brought up health issues. Professor J M Harrington of the Institute of Occupational Health says that longer work days leads to social marginalization due to the disruption of family and social activities.4 Social marginalization and isolation generated by long work days increase neuroticism such as anxiety and depression.5 These mental disorders are caused by lack of recreation. This further extends the need for creating
1 Dattner, Richard. “the philiosophy of play. “ In Design for Play. Cambridge: The MIT Press(1974): p.7 2 Angell F., Charles. Review of The Overworked American: The Unexpected Decline of Leisure, by Juliet Schor, October, 1992, Bridgewater Review.
environments, which balances life of recreation and lengthy work day. A therapeutic recreation specialist Barbara Fredrickson claims that “the word recreation ( ‘re-creation’ ) summarizes many benefits from enjoyable activities.”6 People have been enchanted by the activities of recreation and leisure, since the golden age of ancient Athens.7 The activity of recreation provides many physical and mental benefits. It involves with play and playfulness. Moreover, it reduces personal defensiveness toward the external world and fosters social skills and maturation in children and adults.8 Adult takes the form of recreation to recreate themselves by engaging in freely chosen activities that assist them to achieve a sense of completeness in their life.9 Architect Richard Dattner dedicates to public architecture and playground designs. Dattner states that work is a response to external pressures, and play is manifestation of internal needs and wishes.10 The intensity of work transforms people’s way of living and leads to the increase of health issues. Play is the cure for mental issues caused from external pressures and built environments. Therefore, it is crucial to create the city space that helps people balance their external life and internal needs, and further refine their quality of life.
http://vc.bridgew.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1599&context=br_rev 3 Ibid. 4 Harrington, J M. “Health effects of shift work and extended hours of work.” Occupational and Environmental Medicine 58 (2001)
Literature Review | 29
“All work no play makes Jack a dull boy. All play and no work makes Jack a mere boy.”11
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5 Ibid. 6 Fredrickson, B. “Positive emotions.” In C. Snyder& S. Lopez(Eds), Handbook of positive psychology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press(2002): pp.120-134 7 McLean, Daniel D and Amy R. Hurd. “Recreation and Leisure in Modern Society.” Illinois: Jones and Bartlett Learning (2008): pp.3-4 8 Walsh Roger. “Lifestyle and Mental Health.” American Psychologist 66 (2011): p.585 9 Dattner, Richard. “the philosophy of play. “ In Design for Play. Cambridge: The MIT Press(1974): p.9 10 Ibid. p.7 11 Edgeworth, Maria. “ Harry and Lucy Concluded.” (1825)
How City Transforms The Way Humans Act And Perceive | The Invention of Technology Dr. Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan’s Meet your iBrain argues that our brains evolve through new technological skills. Dr. Small is a professor of psychiatry and the director of the “ UCLA Longevity Center at the Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior.” He is one of the world’s leading innovators in science and technology. Small says, “The current explosion of digital technology is not only changing the way we live and communicate but also rapidly and profoundly changing our brains.” 1 The fundamental social skills, such as facial expression reading and subtle emotional gesture during conversation, are replaced by attention on technology.2 The convenience of technology leads to people heavily relying on smart phones, computers, laptops, and televisions. In new media age, intellectual technologies such as smartphones establish virtual social networks. These virtual social networks alter the way we interact with others. They further change the definition of a friendship. Horizontal relationships gradually replace vertical relationships. Horizontal relationships are superficial and shallow networks that people don’t usually dedicate their time or effort to cultivate deeper friendships. On the other hand, vertical relationships require long-term sacrifice, commitment and effort
to maintain and develop deeper connections.3 Owing to the convenience of information and communication technologies expanding and widening people’s social networks, this leads to the decline in time and energy for maintaining relationships.4 Psychologist Dr. Kenneth J. Gergen, who develops the theory of social constructionism, says that mobile technologies occupy people minds in spite of physical and perceptual presence.5 This means people’s mind constantly distracted by technologies. The excessive concentration on technologies, “technopathologies,” generates psychological dysfunctions and health risks. The followings are symptoms of psychological dysfunctions. Firstly, continuous partial attention is people’s brain never truly focusing on anything. Secondly, techno-brain burnout is when paying continuous partial attention, people place their brain in a intense state of stress.6 As for the risk of health condition, children are spending more time playing computer games and watching television, which decrease chances for outdoor physical activities.7 The results of the decline of physical activities are problems of obesity and developing social skills. However, video games have some play value. People are able to achieve a sense of interpersonal nuance with engaging all
1 Small, Gray and Gigi Vorgan. “Meet your ibrain.” Scientific American Mind 19(2008): p. 44 2 Ibid. 3 Small, Gray and Gigi Vorgan. “Meet your ibrain.” Scientific American Mind
19(2008): p. 44 4 Misra, Shalini, Lulu Cheng, Jamie Genevie and Miao Yuan. “The iphone Effect: The Quality of In-Person Social Interaction in the Presence of Mobile Devices” Environment and Behavior 48 (2016): p.291
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Fg.16 Graffti by Banksy. Many people walking with their eyes drawn to their cell phones texting, messaging, and browsing social media. The virtual social networks are growing, and the physical interaction is decreasing.
five senses while playing in the three-dimensional world.8 No matter how advanced the technologies will be, social interaction is necessary for society to build a sense of belonging and community. Small says that, “All of us will master new technologies and take advantage of their efficiencies, but also we need to maintain our people skills and our humanity.” 9 It is a challenge for technology to establish a sense of community, since people’s humanity and empathy can not be replaced by technologies.
“The current explosion of digital technology is not only changing the way we live and communicate but also rapidly and profoundly changing our brains.” 10
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5 Gergen, Kenneth J.. Perpetual contact: Mobile communication, private talk, public performance. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press (2002): pp.227-241 6 Ibid,. pp. 46-49 7 Bekker,Tilde, Janienke Strum and Berry Eggen. “Designing playful interactions for social interaction and physical play.” Personal and Ubiquitous Computing 14 (2010): p.385 8 Henig, Robin Maramtz. “Taking Play Seriously.” The New York Times Magazine, Feburary 17, 2008 9 Small, Gray and Gigi Vorgan. “Meet your ibrain.” Scientific American Mind 19(2008): p. 49 10Ibid.
How City Transforms The Way Humans Act And Perceive | The Built Environment Changes Our Behaviors There are tangible and intangible perspectives of built space that transform our perceptions. Cities provide space for public life that forms a sense of belonging and community. Architect Theo Crosby, who was an early vocal critic of urbanism, claims “The city has the virtue that provides a proper relationship between private and public life.”1 Public life offers various contacts, which forms a sense of responsibility and involvement among people in the city. Its access further provides social responsibility and social education, in which people can participate in this complex networks and feel a greater part of society.2 On the other hand, the physical public realm such as streets, squares and parks catalyzes public life.”3 We shape cities, and they shape us.” The influence of urban fabrics is heavily related to how people interact with each other. Architecture, urban planning, and landscape affect people’s performance and how people treat one another.4 Dr. Daniel O’Brien’s studies focus on the psychology and sociology of urban neighborhoods. He states the interrelationship of environmental condition experience and people’s consciousness. The following evidences support the correlation of built space and human behavior via the lens of biology.
1 Crobsy, Theo. “Cities“ In Architecture: City Sense. London: Studio Vista Limited(1965): p.15 2 Ibid. 3 Rogres, Richard. “Forward” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press
Evolutionist David Sloan Wilson, who studies all aspects of humanity in biological world, claims that people would translate the physical warmth as the social warmth.5 For example, while walking on cracked sidewalks, they would trigger unconscious fears that cause people to retreat from someone who live there.6 The environments sending out signals make people respond differently to the social landscape.7 Paul Zak, a proponent of neuroeconmics, claims that “The human brain is adaptive, and constantly tuning itself to the environment it is in.”8 Cities should consider the human body, biological sense and mobility for making the urban territory more desirable for all mankind.9 Jan Gehl’s Cities for People describes what makes the urban environment less attractive to people. Gehl is a Danish architect who is dedicated to improving the quality of urban life by advocating human scale and the pedestriancyclist oriented design. Gehl describes setbacks of city design nowadays, which leads to disconnect people in their surroundings. First of all, it is the Brasilia syndrome. It refers to the capital of Brazil, which looks great from an aerial perspective, but the city space is not based on human scale.10 Large scale design, wide streets, long and straight sidewalks,
(2010) 4 Montgomery, Charles. “Convivialities.“In Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design. New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux(2013): p.156 5 Montgomery, Charles. “Conviviality” In Happy City: Transforming Our Lives
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Fg.17 Movable chair creates flexibity for people to build their own talkscape. The project at Time Square in New York city is a typical example of utilizing movable chairs to provide freedom and flexibility for users to create their own space.
huge random collections of stand-alone buildings existing between parking lots and large roads are undesirable for humans to live in.11 Secondly, the building façade plays an important role in city space. It shapes people’s walking experience and perception of the surroundings. While walking along the long horizontal lines with hard edge of the façade, people tend to walk faster than walking along the soft edge and vertical rhythm façade.12 Hard edge of the façade lack of attractiveness and interactions between people and ground floor activities. Thirdly, space for temporary stay in the city is declining. Street furniture and space with edges attract people to
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Through Urban Design. New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux(2013): p.157 6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 Ibid. 9 Gehl, Jan. “ Senses and Scales” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.59 10 Gehl, Jan. “ The Brasilia Syndrome.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.196 11 Ibid. 12 Gehl, Jan. “The Lively City.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): pp.77-79
linger.13 William H. Whyte is an urbanist, who studies human behavior in urabn settings. He theory is based on his direct observation by setting still cameras, notebooks, and people watching to study pedestrian behvaior and the dynamics of the city. Whyte writes that “people tend to sit the most where there are places to sit,” in his The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces.14 He believes that the success of good spaces is “supply creates demand.”15 A good space gets people into new habits such as inducing them to see and utilize their surroundings differently.16 Benches, movable chairs, and even secondary seating are elements that form “talkscape” which encourages people to have communication and interaction with others.17 Besides sitting, standing is a shorter term of stay. People spontaneously seek out standing along the edges of space such as façade details like columns, niches, and walls.18 The decrease of space for temporary staying diminishes opportunities for social interactions. Architect Rem Koolhaas, who is regarded as one of the most influential architectural thinkers and urbanists, says that built environment
13 Gehl, Jan. “Good Cities for Meeting.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.155 14 Whyte, William H.. “Sitting Spaces.” In The social life of small urban spaces. New York: Project for Public Spaces (2001): p.28
of skyscarpers is a self-contained archipelago and the individuality further isloates people from one another.19 With these statements and studies, built environments have heavily influenced the way humans preceive the surroundings and further the way we behave. Thus, according to Whyte’s statement: “supply creates demand.”20It is pivotal to design a space that triggers people’s interpersonal trust and empathy, which developsinteraction. A well designed space brings people together and closer and further creates a new urban memories and an
“We shape cities, and they shape us.” 21 15 Whyte, William H.. “The Design of Spaces.” In City: Rediscovering the Center. New York: Doubleday(1988):P105 16 Ibid. 17 Gehl, Jan. “Good Cities for Meeting.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): pp.155 18 Gehl, Jan. “Good Cities for Staying.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): pp.137-139 19 Koolhaas, Rem. “ The Skyscraper Theorists.“In Delirious New York: A Retroactive Manifesto for Manhattan. New York: Monacelli Press (1994) : P.123 20 Whyte, William H.. “The Design of Spaces.” In City: Rediscovering the Center. New York: Doubleday(1988):P105 21 Gehl, Jan. Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010)
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How Play Affects The Social Functions of Building A Healthy Quality of Life |
Jakka Panksepp, who establishes the theory of affective neuroscience, specializes in neroscience with the psychological study of personality, emotion and mood. The study uses rats play to examine the influences of playful behavior. Panksepp states that play comes from the deepest and most primitive part of the brain.1 Play happens in other animals. It is vital for survival similar to eating, and sleeping. Humans learn social skills from play. Panksepp says that, “the sooner people begin to play, and the sooner they learn about the social world.”2 Stuart Brown, a president of the National institute for Play, also claims that humans are social animals. According to Panksepp, “play is a natural way to make friends.“3 The driving force of building and cultivating social capability, which adapts to any social circumstance, is play.4 Play is also a mechanism, which allows animals to learn give and take and navigate in the complex social situations.5 Gray indicates play equips children for their adulthoods by developing intrinsic interests and competencies, learning how to make decisions, solving problems, exerting self-control and following rules, learning how to regulate emotions, making friends, learning to interact with others as equals ,and experiencing joy.6 Play provides the physical, social and emotional capabilities and intellectual
rewards. This not only benefits for all stages of life but also prepare for unexpected challenges. Play also completes our desire for fully control the world people crave.7 The freedom of play completes human’s wish.8 Philosopher Friedrich Schiller says, “ Man only plays when he is human in the full sense of the word, and he is only completely human when he is playing.”9 Stuart claims that, “ social play has a major role in human behavior.”10 Due to equity of the social play, players need to learn how to read others emotional reactions and needs.11 People understand others needs and refines their empathy towards others through social play. It nurtures our empathy. Undoubtedly, play is a natural way to catalyze social interaction and further developes stronger bonds among people. However, the concrete jungle and competitive educational environments take away the time for play from children. Most children play less than the past. Gray indicates that the reduction of play increases the psychopathology.12 The lack of play in children leads to mental disorders such as anxiety, depression, feelings of helplessness, and narcissism when they grow up.13 The feelings of anxiety, depression and helplessness come from
1 nprEd: How Learning Happens. “Brains At Play.” Accessed November 02, 2016. http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2014/08/04/337387726/brains-atplay 2 IbId.
3 Ibid. 4 Stuart, Brown and Christopher Vaughan. “Parenthood is Child’s Play.“ In Play. New York: Penguin Group(2010): pp. 87-88 5 Eberle, Scott. “The Elements of Play: Toward a Philosophy and a Defini-
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Fg.18 Banksy’s graffti shows the built environments take away children’s chances to play on streets. People learn how to interact with others through play. The decrease of space for play indicates the need for integrating play into people’s daily environments and make play become part of their life.
the lack of control over their life and the increase in social isolation. Narcissism is the result of a deficit in mutual interaction and socialization.14 These studies identify the importance of play to humans’ mental development. Play educates people how to communicate with others and cope with unexpected challenges. Play is a keystone that completes individuals’ life and further develop better wellbeings. In order to secure and preserve human beings’right of play, integrating play into this anonymous concrete jungle becomes inevitable. Use play as a mediator to reconnect habitants and their milieu. A playable
city transforms people’s image of the everyday surroundings. It elevates people’s quailty of life in the city and forms a new habit of interacting with their overlooked places as well as others.
tion of Play.” American Journal of Play 6 (2014): p.217 6 Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play 3 (2011): p.454 7 Dattner, Richard. “the philosophy of play.“ In Design for Play. Cambridge:
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“Play is a natural way of making friends.” 15
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The MIT Press (1974): p. 15 8 Ibid. 9 Ibid. 10 Stuart, Brown and Christopher Vaughan. “Parenthood is Child’s Play.“ In Play. New York: Penguin Group(2010): p.87 11 Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play 3 (2011): p.457 12 Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play 3 (2011): p.443 13 Ibid. 14 Gray, Peter. “The Decline of Play and the Rise of Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents.” American Journal of Play 3 (2011): pp.447-45 15 nprEd: How Learning Happens. “Brains At Play.” Accessed November 02, 2016. http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2014/08/04/337387726/brains-atplay
How Built Environments Provide Interaction Between People and Their Miliue |
There are public spaces specifically designed for driving people away. Designers harness hard edges, gates, fences and unfriendly seating with dark, cold and unpleasant ambience to produce an antisocial effect. The movement of inviting people back to city spaces becomes prevalent. The success of brining people back to city in Copenhagen influences other cities around the world. Urbanist Charles Montgomery, who combines psychology, behavioral economics, architecture with city planning, advocates creating a better urban environment for people. Montgomery’s publication, Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design, describes that every plaza, park, and architectural façade are collections of memories and emotion-operating symbols. They address characteristics of the surroundings and people. The intimacy with these characteristics further alters our perceptions and attitudes. The alterations make people become more open-minded and trusting to strangers. The goal to form the trust between people and strangers is to make people stay. Whyte proposes a theory “triangulation.” It is an external stimulus that builds links among people and further start conversations with strangers.1 The characteristics of triangulation is things that captivate people’s attention, which triggers them to
1 Whyte, William H.. “The Management of Spaces.” In City: Rediscovering the Center. New York: Doubleday(1988):P154 2 Montgomery, Charles. “Convivialities“ In Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design. New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux(2013):
linger, and further creates a proximity between them. Triangulation can be a simple objects on streets such as a public telephone booth, a garbage can, a bench, sculptures and architectural façades. They are good conversation openers for starting conversations with strangers.2 Likewise, Gehl also indicates the built edges and street furniture affects people’s desire to stay and linger.3 He describes that people are inclined to slow down, turn their head, and stop to look towards the open and active façade. He names the active façade as soft edges. Soft edges are zones, which allow to exchange activities from inside to outside.4 These vigorous built elements offer interaction and connection between people and their environments. A successful seating area provides good views, back covered, and low noise level, which help people generate their conversations. The flexibility of movable chairs creates opportunities for customizing individual preferable site, climate, and view. This triggers “talkscapes.”5 Three basic activities: seeing, hearing and talking are the criteria for creating social interaction in the built space. Seeing and hearing activities are passive contacts that trigger conversation among people. Cities should offer space for passive contacts.6 Integrating persuasive play and playfulness into everyday
p.165 3 Gehl, Jan. “the lively, safe, sustainable and healthy city.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): pp.75-79 & pp. 134-147 4 Ibid.
Literature Review | 39
Fg.19 Architecture alters people’s interaction and behave. Swing Time | Höweler + Yoon Architects, Boston
surroundings is a methodology for producing passive contacts and as well as active interactions. Philosopher, Dr. Julian Baggini, who specializes in microphilosophy states that, “Implanting play to the city is a creative response to the anonymity of the city. Play is a medium that interrupts citites’ utilitarian efficiency and makes people to think about what actually makes us human.“7 Playable built space offers the need and energy of recreations for people.8 In Bristol, the United Kingdom, there is “ The Playable City” movement. Playable City considers people and play as the heart of design for the future vision of city. It reuses city infrastructure
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5 Gehl, Jan.”The city at eye level.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.155 6 Gehl, Jan. “The city at eye level.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010):p.148 7 Baggini, Julian. “The city that plays together, stays together.” microphilosophy, September 04, 2014. http://www.microphilosophy.net/the-city-thatplays-together-stays-together/ 8 Gehl, Jan. “Self-expression, play and excerise.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.158
Fg.20 Game-like way design transforms our psychogeographies of familiar built environment and bring people together. Hello Lam Post | PAN Studio, Bristol, UK
and reappropriates smart city technologies to create connections – person to person, person to city.9 The Playable City is to renew urban memories, human scale, and place appropriation through urban landscape, texture and affection.10 Other projects has same design concept including Hello Lamp Post and Swing Time. Hello Lamp Post utilizes overlooked objects such as lamp posts, mailboxes, etc in the city to create interactions with people. It implements game-like ways to form social interaction as well as to give people permissions to observe their milieu differently.11 Similar to Hello Lamp Post, Swing Time is an example of how architecture design changes people’s interaction and behavior through play.12 The project aims to activate outdoor spaces and social interaction by using technology and creativity. Swing time combines the nature of swings with technology, LED light. Shapes and forms of the swings are
different from the traditional ones. This provides for people in all ages to use. The LED lights up the city literaturally and figuratively. Swing time not only ignites people’s interaction but also transforms their impression of the neighborhood. There are playgrounds for children in cities, but the designated playgrounds take away the joy and nuance of exploring outside world. It is why children are inclined to play on streets. While playing on streets, they are able to conduct their own playground by using the raw materials they found in the surroundings.13 Play should happen anywhere in the city such as on rooftops, platforms, with buildings, sidewalks, streets, empty alleyways, etc.14 Play is the component that brings people together. Humans’ reactions and behaviors are based on what they see. Cities should offer opportunities for developing connection. Gehl says the most attractive piece to
9 Playable City. “Vision.“ Accessed Nov. 25. 2016. https://www.playablecity. com/vision/ 10 Baggini, Julian. “Playable Cities: The city that plays together, stays together.” the guardian, September 04, 2014.
11 Stuart, Keith. “Hello Lamp Post and the idea of playful cities.” the guardian, June 27, 2013. 12 MacLeod, Finn.” Get Swinging in Boston on these Glowing LED Hoops.” ArchDaily, September 21, 2014.
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make people stop, linger and watch is watching other people.15 Human activity with playfulness is the best attraction in built environments.16 Play completes the function and beauty of the city.
Fg.21 Hopscotch Crosswalk’ In Baltimore Integrating play and public art with the overlooked crosswalk makes everyday life become playful and fun.
13 Dattner, Richard. “Children as designers.” In Design for Play.Cambridge: The MIT Press (1974): p.53 14 Dattner, Richard. “Other opportunities for play.” In Design for Play. Cambridge: The MIT Press (1974): pp.119-133 15Gehl, Jan. “ The city as meeting place.” In Cities for People. Washington: Island Press (2010): p.20 16 Montgomery, Charles. “Convivialities.“ In Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design. New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux(2013): p.150
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Conclusion |
According to Zak, “The human brain is adaptive, and constantly tuning itself to the environment it is in.” 1 The built environment strongly impacts how people perceive and act in their surroundings. The urban environments should consider human scale and sensation. The density of cities, the fast-pace of lifestyles, the high-pressured work life, and the convenience of technology have altered social interaction. The decline of social interaction leads to social isolation, and mental disorders such as anxiety and depression. These manifestations imply the need for creating a place that cures the issues. Play gives humans freedom to create their own desirable world. It is also a crucial medium that teaches humans how to interact with others. Play is the irreplacable component for building a healthy and vigorous city. needs The combination of city and play provides opportunties for people to interact with others and offers recreation for everyone in the city. City with play catalyzes connection between people and further bonds tighter relationships. The activity of play transforms humans’ percpetions in their daily, and anonymous surroundings. The intimacy between built environments and mankinds transfroms the
impression of cool concrete jungles, and further makes the physical, and artifcial built space become more humane. The new image of the city is not only literally but also figuratively. It makes people mentally and physically healthier. Play should be anywhere for everyone in the city. “ City that plays together stays together.“2 Play is a catalyst that regenerates the connections between people and their everyday milieu, and further forms a new city character.
1 Montgomery, Charles. “Convivialities.“ In Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design. New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux(2013): p.157 2Baggini, Julian. “Playable Cities: The city that plays together, stays together.” the guardian, September 04, 2014
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Design As Research Methods Site of Play Tectonics of Play System of Play Scales of Play Playscale Catalogue Summary
Fg. 22 City as Playground Make city as a playground by implanting playfulness to urban fabrics. City fabrics become playable. The playcode will be applied to any urban conditions and makes play become everyday life.
Fg.23 The diagram of playcode system can be applicable to any urban conditions.
Methods | Currently, the methodologies for expressing and forming thesis concept are diagramming, drawing, model-making, image-collaging, and video-making. These methods are studied through various lens, such as sites, systems, tectonics and scale. They concrete the idea of creating a playcode system that generates a persuasive play in the city. Playcode is a system, which is a guideline for creating interesting, safe unexpected, and fun conditions for city dwellers and visitors. It includes building facade code, play space zoning, street furniture design and immaterial stimuli such as color, smell and lights. Playcode is a “ If and Then� mechanism. If applies method A, the outcome will be Aa. It produces various scenarios for any urban
conditions. The design intent of the playcode is to trigger people’s attention, and further develops a persuasive play. The system will be based on tectonic study of existing building features and urban fabrics. The goal of the study is to generate a sense of body movements, a connectivity of communities and a different perception of overlooked and everyday surroundings. Persuasive play is a medium for achieving the concept of bringing people closer together. As for the further development of the project, material study, sensory technologies, body movements, different groups of users, and human scale are the tools for testing and practicing the concept of forming social networks through play.
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Site of Play | Site examines urban conditions, such as streets, alleyways, parking spaces, and city plaza for creating a generic zoning system. It is a larger scope of providing safe and unexpected space for play. Play should not be limited to parks and playgrounds. The zoning system also customizes space for certain activities or specific group of users. Although the spaces are customized, they are correlated to one another. The city will become a theme park, which has different activities happening at the same time and people are connected through all kinds of liveliness. Take street parking space as an example. Make parking space not only for vehicles but also for people. Transform parking space into a playable zone, where people can relax and play with their kids and friends. This type of occupy-able space can be represented much more playful and meaningful to citizens. The potential of various site conditions forms connectivity among these scenarios. This method inspires the idea of “building a sense of community and social interaction.� Working on different types of users and bringing various activities together are the next step for the future investigation.
Generic Site Conditions The diagram is four site scenarios: street parking space, alleyways, city plaza, and streets. The site scenarios examine these overlooked spaces.The call-out boxes are the projections of these four scenarios. There are all kinds of activities happening simultaneously in the city. Space is customized for users’ preferences and activities. Analyzing through sites indicates the potentials for creating a system that can offer for different groups of users in the city and each sites has its own characteristics. Connect each sites together to create a series of activities that further establish a diverse and playful city impression.
Fg.24 Site provides various activities to happen simultaneously in these overlooked spaces. They establish diverse and vigorous city social networks. Design as Research | 49
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Connectivity Through Sites The model interprets the idea of all types of small scales of play plots interconnect with one another. All types of activities and users are correlated. Black represents the alleyway condition; pink is the street parking space; carmine is street. They are all connected to the center, which is the plaza. This connectivity transforming the fragile networks into a complex and intimate system, which makes city more friendly and further creates its own characteristics. The frame of sites encourages to build interaction through different small scales of plots for play and social interaction. These small scales of plots create a “ butterfly effect.� It will generate a greater city social networks.
Fg.25 The model interprets the connections among these individualities and how these individualities become a greater networks in the city. Design as Research | 51
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Tectonics of Play | The investigation of the frame focuses on tectonics. Studying the structures allows for persuasive play. The structure performance and the material assembly are catalyst, which trigger people’s curiosity and body movements. They generate a sense, which makes people want to play with and climb on. The scope of physical movements includes climbing, hanging and sliding. The exploration through tectonics forms the idea of integrating body movements and existing urban fabrics. Material assembly and structure performance develop future study of a system of human’s physical movements, and how the materials create opportunities for unintentional play.
Tectonics Study Through Material Assembly The model is to study banisters. Banisters are mainly for assisting people climbing stairs. In musical Mary Poppins, Mary Poppins and the kids take banisters as a slide. In the real world, skateboarders utilize them as skateboarding slide. Banisters become alternative for slides. In order to allow play to happen in every staircases with banisters, the study of how banisters join the staircases is important. The geometry and slope of banisters affect safety and playable possibility. Besides the sliding through banisters, the space of staircases and banisters generate a sense of hiding, crawling and crouching. In between space of banisters and staircases, and the performance of banisters produce various play activities simultaneously. Examining these daily architecture elements opens up the imagination of these overlooked objects. This helps the future development of an exterior and interior playable architecture elements: safe and playful staircase and banister.
Fg.26 The banister and staircase study opens up the imagination of these overlooked architecture elements. Staircase can be a place to climb, hide and crawl. Banister becomes a slide. Stairs are connecting not only different elevation but also people. Design as Research | 53
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Tectonics Study Through Material Assembly This model examines the concept of building code with brick assembly. The ways of brick stacking creates handles for holding and climbing. Brick stacking applies to facade design. It not only has its performance but also becomes some people’s playground. Handles arouse people’s curiosity to touch and climb. People walk on the street and interact with people climbing on the facade. It creates an interesting and playful city ambiance. In order to provide a safe, approachable and climbable building for city dwellers and visitors, the indoor rock climbing study will be applied to building code: accessible and climbable facade design.
Fg.27 The model is to experience the climbable building facade. With brick handles and window sills, it makes building become a playground. People climbing on the building also creates an interaction with not only anonymous building but also people who are walking on the street. Design as Research | 55
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Tectonics Study Through Parkour The study takes John Elliot’s Olympic Parkour Theatre as a precedent. Parkour study focuses on using simple geometry to generate a sense of hanging and climbing. Parkour is built with simple form, landscape and materials. The geometry assembly affects people moving from one space to another. The handles, round bars, in parkour are tools for players to move and climb on the concrete blocks easily. These two models explore the sense of climbing, and leaping. They are two different structures. One is utilizing the holes on concrete blocks. Create the handles through the holes and transforms the concrete block into a climbing wall. The other is building a frame for leaping and climbing. They can be applied to create a frame for building structures or use existing building features to make facade become a parkour.
Fg.28 & Fg.29 The models are two different representation of the parkour. One is using existing features and transforms into a climbable surface. The other is creating a frame to make existing features become playable. Design as Research | 57
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Tectonics Study Through Parkour This is the iteration of previous two models. The model explores how simple geometry creates more than just climbing and leaping. The geometry of the model examines a sense of sliding, climbing, hanging and leaping. This move people from one space to another. The model can be interpreted to the structure of the building features or landscape installations. It also can be interpreted in to various scales. For example, the roof forms allow people to slide and hang and move from one building to another building. By studying the geometry that triggers human’s body movement, it leads to the next study of human body movement.
Fg.30 The model explores how geometry assembly allows various body movements. It also can be interpreted to various scales, such as building features and landscape installation. The integration of physical movements and built form generates a new perspective of moving through the space. Design as Research | 59
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System of Play | The investigation of the frame focuses on body movements and interpret these into built features. Using human’s physical movements generates the built features and scale. In order to create persuasive play, the built performance needs to follow human scales and body forms. The category of body movements is crucial for playcode. The body movements are different from groups of people. The system of body movements will customize the needs for the users and also develop an universal design guideline for an intergenerational play features.
System of Body Movement In order to create a system for designing human scale features for persuasive play, applying and examining body movements are the first step. The drawing lists out the most common movements such as climbing, hanging, running, balancing, jumping, sitting, walking, etc. The movements with the simple lines as an assistant showing how human body interacts with the surface. For example, while people crawling, their body is restricted by the in between space. The geometry of the space affects people’s interaction and movements. The body movement seems to be individual. However, there is connectivities among these individualities. The body movements are also influential. They establish persuasive interaction. This will be the system of movements and interaction as a building playcode: physical move and human scale of play.
Fg.31 The diagram shows different body movements and how they interact and relate to the surface or space. The body movements seem to be individual, but they trigger the interaction among people. Design as Research | 61
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System of Body Movement The model is the interpretation of the previous body movements catalog. In the model, the design is based on the study of body movements and human scale. The drawing analyzes how people interact with the surface. On the other hand, this model is to transfer the interaction into architectural features. For example, the meshed ramp is inspired by the movements of climbing, crawling, crouching and jumping. The space under the ramp is a space where people can hide. As for the meshed surface, it creates a sense of crawling and jumping. The slope is for climbing. The system of body movements is the data for transforming into a built features that triggers people’s actions.
Fg.32 The model interprets the body movements into architectural features. There are various play activities in these model: climbing, jumping, hiding, pulling, swinging and sitting. The structure performance affects body move.
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Scales of Play | The frame examines the scale of play. It is the comment from the mini-conference. Which scales should be implemented for making city as a playground? The scales can be varied from street furniture design to the city zoning. This frame helps determine the scale of play. The scale of the work can be various. It depends on the zoning and building code. These individual works are correlated to one another. The outcome will affect entire city. Besides, the idea of intergenerational playground, it needs to consider different generations of users.
System of Scales This model presents in two different scales; one is the landscape installation, and the other is building scale. First, the landscape installation is a size of regular playground. It implants play elements to street furniture and landscape. The height of the installation is safe for children. The form allows all kinds of activities, such as running, sitting, hiding, sliding, jumping and balancing. As for the scale of building, the ramp is the connection from the ground to the roof. Building itself becomes a playground. Both scales show the limitations and advantages. Through this frame, the goal of creating city as a playground becomes very clear. In order to realize the ideal city playground, the design should consider various scales for any playful potentials.
Fg.33 The model interprets in building scale and playground installation. Take the building scale as example. The building still preserves its original function. At the same time, the slope becomes a slide that people can slide down from the roof to the ground floor. Design as Research | 65
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System of Scales The collage presents the similar idea as the previous model. It examines two different scales; one is street furniture , and the other is building. First, the scale of street furniture. It focuses on the furniture design. The performance of the furniture creates interaction and play potentials. It also considers the needs and safety for different generations. For example, old people play board game on the bench. At the same time, kids climb up and down on the other side of the bench. It mingles two different activities and generations. As for the scale of building, the climbable exterior wall is one of the play elements. This relates to the previous tectonics study of transforming existing building features. Building still preserves its own function and meanwhile it is also a playground for adventurous city dwellers and visitors.
Fg.34 The collage interprets various scales from street furniture to the building scale. The street furniture becomes a playground for different generations. As for the building scale, the building is a playground, such as a climbable exterior wall. Design as Research | 67
Street Furniture
Climable Facade
Play through Buildings
Playable Street Funtion Play Repetitive actions that require the use of people’s sense and muscles
Constructive Play Play that manipulate the environment to create things
City Maze
Game with Rules Play that follows explicit of formal rules
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Play Scale Catalogue
The play scale is a criteria for this project. The element of play is based on the theory of play. There are function play, constructive play and game with rules. The theory of play completes the idea of play scale. Play is beyond the function of play. Play provides social interactions for friendly environment in city. Various play scales fulfill the idea of transforming everyday environment into a city playground. From the street furniture to the city block, it sets a system for implanting play into urban fabrics.
Fg. 38 The diagram shows the system of creating different play scales from street furniture, climable facade, play through buildings, playable street to city maze.
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Summary |
Fg.35 The collage of parklet design is an example of the playcode system. Site: Transformation of street parking space Tectonic: Movable foam blocks assembly as landscape System: Climbing and sitting Scale: The landscape installation
Site, tectonics, system and scale frame the concept of playcode system. The future development of the playcode guideline will be based on these four lens. The followings are the summary of playcode through these four lens. Site of play Site determines play activities and zoning for play. The zoning system will further connect these small play plots into a greater city networks. Tectonic of play Tectonic determines the structure performance and the material assembly for play. The playcode system will derive from geometry and material assembly. This is based on human scale and physical move. System of play System determines the body movements for play. Body movements will be transformed into built features that trigger people’s play motions. Scale of play Scale of play determines the integration of play to urban fabrics. Scales of works are various. They depend on the building code and zoning. The outcomes of these correlated project will affect entire city.
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Design Process Probe- Integrating Play into Architecture Testing Site Play Prototype City Maze Interactive Building Surface
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Probe | This probe is to present the idea of intergrating play into architecture. The design intent of the probe is to trigger a sense of play and interaction with architecture performance and develops social interaction. The collage of the overlooked windows represents the everyday environment and the speaking cone facade presents the idea of interactive building surface. The in between space of speaking cone facade and overlooked windows forms connections. These connections indicate the idea of social interactions in the city. There are two interactions. First, the physical interaction is to create a sense of climbing. Second, the verbal and audible interaction are the interaction through the speaking cone. The speaking cone allows talking and hearing.
Fg. 36 The model on the left is integrating play into architecture. The speaking cone facade and overlooked windows are the representation of how people interact with architecture. Fg. 37 The in between space forms the connections between two individuals in the city. Design Outcomes | 75
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Site Analysis |
Site Analysis Diagram
In order to create a playcode system for applying to any urban condition, this project chooses two city blocks between Tremont street and Washington street as a testing site. This testing site extends the Boston Common (recreation) to downtown commercial district (work environment/ everyday life). The site fulfills the idea of how play can be integrated into everyday life and makes play become part of everyday life. The determination of parti program diagram is based on the site scenario. The playable street utilizes the pedestrian path. The maze playground takes advantages of the building and alleyway conditions. The climbable facade focuses on the potential of playable and climbable condition.
Program Parti Diagram
Fg. 39 The red rectangle is where the site is. The site extends the recreation from Boston Common to the Downtown Financial District. Fg. 40 The diagram shows the site is the extension of recreation to the everyday life from Boston Common. Fg. 41 Parti diagram of different programs in the site
Design Outcomes | 77
Fg. 42 The diagram is the circulation and program of the city maze.
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Climable Facade Diagram
City Maze Diagram
Collective Activities Space Diagram
City Playground CirculationDiagram
Design Outcomes | 79
Slide with a crawling space
Integrating easel into window
80 | City as Playground
Platform for skateboarding
Integrating the building corner
Scale of Play | The scale of play is from street furniture, building scale to the street scale. The form of the slope integrates with the window. The slope area offer different programs for different age groups. For example, it can be slide, skateboarding area for the youth. Also it provides the easel for younger children. Besides, the slope can scale up to influence the building and street. The slope integrates with the building corner and sidewalk, which transforms the experience of daily environment. This provides the new interaction with buildings and sidewalks.
Platform for skateboarding
Fg. 43 The slope is a prototype of street furniture scale. The slope integrates with the window sill. The scenarios shows the different programs can happen within this prototype.
Design Outcomes | 81
Integrating with climbable facade
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Fg. 44 The diagram of play through building. The slope prototype and the climbable facade offers chances to interact with buildings and transforms the way people interact with buildings.
Integrating with the sidewalks and buildings
Fg. 45The slope scale up to the street. It effects the landscape of the street. The center provide the walking and the slope on both sides allow skateboarders to play.
Design Outcomes | 83
Aggregation of speaking cone
Aggregation of speaking cone in elevation
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Speaking Cone Prototype | The speaking cone prototype is similar to the Lego box. There is a flexibility of scaling for this prototype. It can be stacked as street furniture like benches. Also it can be integrated with existing facade that allows people to climb and sit. The speaking cone prototype also functions as regular windows. There are potentials to develop the speaking cone prototype for applying to different scales from street furniture, building to street landscape. The design project will focus on developing this prototype for transforming existing condition and further develop a system for generic urban conditions.
Fg. 46 The speaking cone prototype is similar to the lego box. They can be arranged and scaled up to provide an opportunity for climbing and sitting. It also functions as windows.
Design Outcomes | 85
Birdview of City Maze
Perspective of City Maze from the Tremont Street
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City Maze |
City Maze Entrance
City maze is a city miniature. The idea is derived from the alleyway condition. The alleyway provides a different way to experience the city. City maze fulfills the idea of making city as a labyrinth through connecting alleyways and streets. The building and street furniture itself become the divisions of the labyrinth. The intense maze section transformed from the building. It shows a stronger intention of the maze space while walking through the block. However, there is a disjunction between city maze and the climbable facade and playable street. The disjunction makes the city maze become less successful than the other two programs.
Program of City Maze Fg. 47 The city maze creates a copy of city. The system of the maze still preserves the function of the city. The programs of the city maze are offices, restaurants and retai stores. Green: retail stores, restaurants Orange: offices
Design Outcomes | 87
Interactive Building Surface 88 | City as Playground
Bench
Seating
Brick Assembly
Hand Hold/ Foot Hold
Interactive Building Surface |
Hand Hold/ Foot Hold
Fg. 48 The interactive building surface is derived from the climbable facade design concept.
The interactive building surface starts from the tectonic of material assembly as a prototype development. Brick is the main material for play through tectonics study. Bricks are easy to carved, can be decorative, apply color and texture on them. In order to create the climbable surface, the brick assemble study for creating hand and foot holds.
Design Outcomes | 89
The glass panel provides interaction between the exterior and interior.
Interactive Building Surface
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Interactive Landscape
Interactive Building Surface | Brick Block Prototype
Bricks
The interactive building surface starts from the tectonic of material assembly as a prototype development. In order to create a talkable facade, this series creates a brick prototype that allows interaction between exterior and interior. The brick also creates a landscape that integrates into alleyway. The landscape also flexible that people can create their own seatings through these movable boxes.
Brick Block Prototype
Glass
Fg. 49 The interactive building surface is derived from the climbable facade design concept.
Design Outcomes | 91
Interactive Building Surface
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Summary | The biggest criticism of all these elements is the disconnection among these climbable facade, playable street and city maze. During the exploration of how play can be integrated into architecture, these design process and criticisms refine the final design. The final design is based on these investigations and studies for developing a kit of part play elements. These elements can be applied to not only the street surface but also building surface in any urban conditions. Although the final design will be only focused on the idea of playable street and climbable facade, it is still a model for expanding to the idea of city maze.
Fg. 50 Utilize the characteristics of bricks for creating an interactive landscape and surface.
Design Outcomes | 93
Design Outcomes Site Methods and Criteria Playcode Post Construction Installation Building Code for Play Playable Winter Street
Millennium Tower
Winter Street
Boston Common
Tremont Street
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Washington Street
Site |
Summer Street
In order to develop a system of playcode, winter street is a testing site for the system. Winter street is located between Boston Common and Boston downtown. Boston Common is a recreation environment and winter street become an extension of recreation to the work environment. This winter street becomes a model for integrating play into urban fabrics.
Design Outcomes | 97
Shop Pla
Recreation Environment
Winter Street
Boston Common
Tadpole Playground
Theater Interactive Surface
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Site Analysis |
pper aza
Downtown Commerical District
Winter street is located between Boston Common and Boston downtown commercial district. Boston Common is a recreation environment and winter street become an extension of recreation to the work environment. The play interventions connect the surrounding urban playful fabrics such as Tadpole Playground, shopper plaza’s theater staircase and the interactive building surface.
Design Outcomes | 99
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Method |
Criteria |
The play system is a kit of part that can be applied and assembled for different scales. The kit of part can also integrated into streetscape and the entire city block. The kit of part system fulfills the goal of this proposal of transforming everyday environment into a playground. The method starts from the tectonic of material assembly as a prototype development. Brick is the main material for play through tectonics study. Playfulness can be presented through brick characteristics. These prototype can be integrated into existing conditions and scale up to the streetscape and the city block. The representations are through axon, plan and perspectives.
•
Play intervention is derived from playground elements and the body movements as prototype development
•
The interconnection and correlation of climbable facade and playable street
•
Manipulating the characteristics of the existing condition and materials
•
Elements of play should generate collective activities for building social interaction
•
The representation needs to be playful and unrealistic.
Axon | The representation of tectonics of the materials assembly and the transformation of existing conditions and interventions.
Fg. 51 Playable Winter Street Perspective
Design Outcomes | 101
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Playcode | The playcode is a system that can be applicable to any urban condition. The design of the playcode is based on the body movement, brick assembly and playground elements. There are six different playcode system , which are veil light and shadow, climbable facade, hopscotch, seesaw, spinning wheel, and single plank bridge.
Fg. 52 Playable Winter Street Perspective
Design Outcomes | 103
Body Movement
Playground Elements
Brick Assembly
104 | City as Playground
Kit of Part | Playcode is a kit of part system. The design prototype is based on body movements, brick assembly and playground elements. The elements kit of part can be categorized into two sections : Post Construction Installation and Building Code for Play. Post construction installation generates street collective activities. The elements for street collective activities are hopscotch, merry go round, slide and see saw. Building code for play is a permanent interactive building surface performance. It scales up the playground elements into architecture . These interactive architecture destructs the overlooked urban environment and give a new perception of city image. The elements of the building code for play are Spinning wheel, single plank bridge, climbable facade, and veil light and shadow.
Fg. 53 Body movement, playground elements and brick assembly are the design guidelines for playcode prototype design
Design Outcomes | 105
106 | City as Playground
Post Construction Installation | The playcode is a system that can be applicable to any urban condition. The design of the playcode is based on the body movement, brick assembly and playground elements. There are six different playcode system , which are veil light and shadow, climbable facade, hopscotch, seesaw, spinning wheel, and single plank bridge.
Fg. 54 Post construction Installation generates collective activities on the winter street
Design Outcomes | 107
108 | City as Playground
7” / 14” height of steps
Hopscotch
It denotes activities and zone for play
18” height seatings
Hopscotch is the major element of this playable street. Every elements are connected through hopscotch and hopscotch also denotes the activities on the playable street.
36.5’
Merry Go Round 6’ 18” height seatings
The nature of merry go round needs two people to generate an interaction. It also scales up that creates seating area for people to sit and push. Merry go round is similar to the slide that locates on the entrance/ exit of the playable street.
Design Outcomes | 109
110 | City as Playground
See Saw
13’
Walking see saw platform
8’
Seating see saw
There are two sizes of see saw. The smaller one is similar to the traditional see saw that needs to sit on and generates games. The large one is a walking platform that changes the walking experience on street.
Slide
5.5’ Path through slide
Slide changes the walking experience on street. People can enter the street by choosing to slide down from slides or walk underneath slides. Slide connects to the hopscotch and opens up the journey of play.
11’
Design Outcomes | 111
112 | City as Playground
Building Code for Play | The building code for play is integrating play into architecture. Building code destructs the way of we think about architecture. Architecture becomes a tool of play in cities. The building code for play is different from the post construction installation. It is a permanent playable urban fabrics in cities.
Fg. 55 Building code for play is the code system for constructing playable architecture
Design Outcomes | 113
114 | City as Playground
Spinning surface
Spinning Wheel
Play intervention 5’
6’
The nature of tic tac toe needs two people to generate a game. Spinning wheel is a further iteration of tic tac toe. Color and spinning functions allow people to create their own facade pattern.
Single Plank Bridge Small Pocket for privacy Balcony walk path
8’
30’
9’
The form allows interactions from standing at different heights. The sizes of pockets provides individual space and collective space.
Big Pocket for Collective Activities
Design Outcomes | 115
116 | City as Playground
Perfomative Surface Balcony
Climbable Facade Climbable Surface 30’
Brick Landscape 14’
Utilize brick assembly for creating landscape, which transform the walking experience on the winter street. Besides, the brick can also be applied to building surface to create hand holder, foot holder for climbable facade.
1’
Veil Light and Shadow Veil for Shadow
12’
Veil is a screen with playful veil shadow light and shadow creates an playful interactive building surface by manipulating size of shadow and human movement through space.
10’
Design Outcomes | 117
Hopscotch Hopscotch is located between Boston Common and the Winter Street. It is the beginning of the winter street play journey.
118 | City as Playground
Merry Go Round Merry go round needs two people to play game. During the push and spin, it triggers social interaction between players.
Design Outcomes | 119
Veil Light and Shadow Veil light and shadow is an interactive building surface, which generates interactions on both side.
120 | City as Playground
Spinning Wheel The spinning wheel surface is an interactive facade. People can generate patterns by spinning the color wheels.
Design Outcomes | 121
Climbable Facade and Landscape Climbable facade and landscape are based on the brick assembly, which transform building surface into a climbing surface. Brick street landscape change people’s walking experience on the street.
122 | City as Playground
Single Plank Bridge The building form is based on the single plank bridge. The offset of each layers allows interaction through different elevations.
Design Outcomes | 123
Climbable Facad and Landscape
Hopscotch
Veil Light and Shadow
124 | City as Playground
de Spinning Wheel
Merry Go Round
Single Plank Bridge
Design Outcomes | 125
Veil Light and Shadow Climbable Facade Single Plank Bridge Balcony Walk Spinning Wheel Surface Single Plank Bridge Pocket Section A-A’
Climbable Brick Facade
Veil Light and Shadow Hopscotch Single Plank Bridge Balcony Walk Brick Landscape Single Plank Bridge Pocket Section B-B’
Veil Light and Shadow Climbable Facade
Brick Landscape Section C-C’ 126 | City as Playground
C
C’
B
B’
A
A’
Fg. 56 Playable winter street model Fg. 57 Playable winter street model
Design Outcomes | 127
128 | City as Playground
Fg. 58 Winter street perspective Design Outcomes | 129
130 | City as Playground
Fg. 59 Winter street perspective Design Outcomes | 131
132 | City as Playground
Fg. 60 Winter street perspective Design Outcomes | 133
Reflection Critical Evaluation Reflection & and Critical Evaluation
136 | City as Playground
Reflection and Critical Evaluation | This thesis project proposed how architecture performance changes the way people looking at their everyday environment through a playful way. Play is essential to people’s life and human build relationships with others through play. This thesis shows play and architecture that can be interconnected for creating a better urban space for greater communities in cities. This project is a starting point of constructing social interactions and connections among people and their environments through architectural design. This idea can be kept carried for the further and more realistic development in the future. There are still a lot of great opportunities for the future development for this project such as the detail tectonic study of how these play elements can be attached to building and street surface, how these can be applied to greater scale in urban contexts, a play category for the integenerational playground and a more sysematic way of destruction the overlooked urban structure.
Fg.61 City as Playground Proposal
Reflection & Critical Evaluation | 137
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