PLAYSCAPE INTENT: The project asks the understanding of how the senses connect to people consciously or sub consciously and how do our senses work and inform us and promote or engender a reaction. How are our senses linked to spaces, materials and the environment? The project requests the creation of a space or artfact which describes and illustrates one or more senses. PLAY: environments are often associated with children’s playground equipment slides, swings and roundabouts, each evokes or experiences movement, speed, a change in direction, taking the body off the floor and into the air. Children are curious and excited by these other dimensions they can enjoy. It is true to say that adults also enjoy similar experiences but these experiences are often left to theme parks rides or gentle motion of a garden swing. However the idea behind play is about discovery of simple scientific laws of motion.
PRECEDENT 1: Looking at another toy, the Rubriks cube, reveals a test of memory and sequence, and the alignment of colours in a 3D matrix
It is a children’s game but it is also a way for them to learn many skills such as geometry, logical thinking, the ability to solve puzzles and therefore - problems - to be patient, the ability to fail and motor coordination skills. Considering the idea of stimulating children to learn through the sense of play, a series of study models and drawings were produced.
MATERIAL: THE POSITIVE AFFECT OF A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT: Researchers such as Giedion and Pallasma have long shown that exposure to the natural environment positively impacts human health and well-being, both psychologically and physically. Lowering blood pressure and reduced levels of aggression are just some of the measured positive outcomes in humans registered by Dr. Shanahan, D. et all, in the scientific article “Health Benefits from Nature Experiences Depend on Dose” and many others. Pallasma, an architect known for his response to materials and their bearing on the skin and therefore our senses, criticizes the ocular bias of our culture which reflects directly on our architecture and design. This ocular bias, according to Pallasma, is generated by the production of inspiring structures but it has not promoted human rootedness in the world. As Pallasma says, “It housed the eye, but it has left the body and all the other senses homeless”. (Pallasma: 2005) Considering this approach and belief, the foundation of the playscape is to create an environment surrounded by nature which pushes human engagement back into attachment, contact and interiority with the world they are a part of. There was an attempt to solve the corners’ issue by replacing the squares with hexagons. As can be seen , it did not work because the weight is still high for a child to interact with.
When thinking about material, it was important to consider that colours are perceived differently when painted onto wood or coated on metals for instance. In order for the play scapes to meet sustainable ideals,a timber such as oak would be proposed. It has strength and can withstand weathering. It can be sustainably grown to allow for easy repair and maintenance.
COLOUR STUDY:
The use of colours were studied carefully so that the play scapes could fulfil other explorations such as putting contrasting colours together in motion, would this create a third colour? One of the main objectives of this design is to evoke childhood memories and the sense of curiosity that a child is afforded. Colours evoke memories, many cultures use primary and secondary colours within children’s envionments, they are bright and bold and stand as corner stones of the whole idea of colour which led to yellow being chosen as the first colour. Besides being the strongest colour of the spectrum, it is also a warm colour - which increases arousal and consequently memory retention - and in colour-mood association studies, yellow is associated with comedy, a happy mood and playfulness which is exactly what this project is about. Secondarily, purple was chosen as the complimentary colour to yellow to create a pleasing effect.
Through a variety of study’ models using wood, a series of simple geometic forms were created to test opposing and different types of motion and movement. The scale was important, as it is brought out of the normal children scale into another realm that might be considered sculptural
PRECEDENT 3: Looking at the Newton’s Cradle, this is a device which demonstrates conservation of momentum and energy using a series of swinging spheres. Although it is not a toy, it also fascinates children through the the movement, a change of direction and speed experiences.
PRECEDENT 2:
5.0
By having this ‘geometrical lamp case’ as a precedent, now there was a chance to make the same geometrical form’ either giant and lighter.
Considering the basic idea of this playscape which is to stimulate children to learn through the sense of play, a series of sketches were produced with the objective to come up with the second play element.
PIVOT A enormous piece of kinetic sculpture which children are encouraged to interact with through several points of interaction: colours, movement, scale and sound. The objective is not to be literal, it is to stimulate their imagination based on the concept that when things are simple, people are not challenged by them. It is to give the users the sense of enclosure without building them an enclosure to affect a better state. The senses stimulated by these elements are: the sense of balance - as the user is engaging with the sculpture, they are learning about balance and equilibrium by themselves. It is either from seeing how fast it moves with a simple push/pull - which comes from the user’s body or from a natural force - or from sitting on it while it moves. The sense of curiosity - when seeing giant scaled colourful objects making some sound while it moves which catches the users attention encoraging them to participate on it. Sense of thought and time- which are totally related and it is hit when the user is immerse in nature observing the movement of the colourful elements or when the user is moving with the object while the wind blows. The sense of speed and movement - which can cause both, adrenaline or relaxation state depending on the speed in which the object and person is moving. The sense of learning - which is related to each discovery children make using the sculpture which leads to science. Also there is a sense of play - as children play games to win and they get a prize, engaging with this object gives them the sound as a prize which they can control.
MATERIALITY AND COLOUR STUDIES: The use of material follow the same pattern in all the playscape elements. In this case, it is distributed on a way that: the square and pyramid are made out of oak wood and the row of balls are made out of metal. For this second knetic sculpture, as a primary colour, red was chosen first. Psychologically, red is a powerful and strong colour. In colour-mood association studies, it has the property of appearing to be closer than it is and therefore it grabs people’s attention first. It helps with the positioning study of the elements. The red piece is located further than the first element but it seems to be closer from the viewer sight. Secondarily, green was chosen as the complimentary colour to red to create an attractive visual effect. Whilst both geometric shapes appear to be angular, all edges would be rounded for comfort and ease of use.
MOVEMENT + SOUND: By placing a metal spinning wheel - in which the spin axis is free - inside the wood geometrical cube, besides of the independently movement of both geometries, a sound was also achieved as a consequence of the kinetic friction between the 2 different materials’ moving surfaces.
PLAYSCAPE
PRECEDENT 3: Looking at the Gyroscope Gimbal, this is a device used for measuring or maintaining orientation and angular velocity. It is a spinning wheel in which the spin axis is free to assume any orientation by itself. Although it is not a toy, many toys were created based on its scientific basic laws of motion and balance. So why not to create a giant one for the children?
PIVOT
From studying its dimensions and movements. It was possible to create the playscape’s third piece of kinetic sculpture. The children are also encouraged to interact with this element through its giant scale, movement and colours
4.5
MATERIALITY AND COLOUR STUDIES: The use of material follow the same pattern in all the playscape elements. In this case, it is distributed on a way that: the rings are made out of oak wood and the spin axis are made out of metal. By referring back to the primary colours, blue was the first colour to be chosen for this geometrical element. Besides calls to mind feelings of calmness and serenity, according to colour-mood association studies, blue is described as peaceful, tranquil, secure, and orderly. Secondarily, orange was chosen also as the complimentary colour to blue to create a pleasing effect. The 3 pieces of kinetic sculptures were thought and designed carefully so that as a result, the playscape created would compose a scenario within nature. The location of each element is not randomly, it was chosen according to the psychology of colours and study of proportions.