project brief:
Make masthamnsgatan more child-friendly
Briefing points
masthamnsgatan is being rebuilt as part of Scandinavia's biggest reconstruction project
come up with a design proposition to make the area more child-friendly
think about Gothenburg's weather
focus on play signals
Process
Children can play anywhere and with anything, but how can we make them feel welcome in a street that is designed only for passage?
The project started with a group exercise to determine the urban playability of Gothenburg, leading to the creation of a written guide on how to enable play in a city. during the project, we interacted with several stakeholders such as trafikkontoret or the association "rain Gothenburg", as well as architect pedagogues and school teachers which helped us organize workshops with children remotely (due o the pandemic).
the input from the children in relation to how they'd like to interact with the city and the weather brought to me the idea to experiment with water and the creation of rainbows. i wanted the project to Explore the playfulness of natural elements.
3d rainbow filter test in my apartment
i found a material called 3d rainbow filter and started experimenting with it, as well as exploring different shapes that could add playability to the rain. below are a few sketches I made while toying with the idea of utilizing rainwater, as Gothenburg is quite famous for its bad weather. i also did and filmed physical experiments where I poured colored water over diverse glass shapes to find out how to best direct the stream.
finally, i had to simplify my structure and settle with offering shelter from the rain (and wind) while also giving the opportunity to both see and hear the rain from a comfortable shelter. as many children suggested, playing with water is fun, as long as you have a choice whether to get wet or not. the main focus of my final structure was to create rainbows, both through the sun and artificial sun-powered light.
result
the Measurements are built around the size of a wheelchair in order to be inclusive.
I added sun powered Motion-activated lamps to add playability when it's dark, making sure the structure is ever-changing with the time of day as well as the seasons.
from the start, I wanted to create an intergenerational meeting space that leaves room for meaningful encounters between different age groups.
the "playability" of the structure is also present at night, where the rainbows can be "summoned" through the use of motion-activated lamps.
A video presentation of the project can be found at this link: