A participatory playground: A network of playscapes in the city of Larisa
Abstract
This paper presents participatory design methodologies concerning the institutionalized public spaces for play as long as its implementation through different stages until the final assessment. This research concerns the municipality of Larisa, a city located in the region of Thessaly, Greece and started in May 2016.
The main points of interest that formed this research were the critical analysis of the way playgrounds are being created in Modern Greek cities, the role of the architect (designer) in the production process as well as the actual absence of the child (user) at the stages of conception, implementation and potential expansion of their usage.
This inquiry investigates the designer’s capabilities to act as a «mediator» between the state, the children and their attendants, interpreting the elements from every aspect into architectural practice (participation in festival organizing workshops, creation and promotion of digital research platform «Ludus Loci»[1], questionnaires distributed in schools and actions in community settings). Also children as users were given the opportunity to participate through discussing and making in the design of these sites (1:1 scale structures, physical models at various scales and qualities). Based on the notion of creative play, their imagination regarding the relation between space and play was emancipated, enriching the design range and simultaneously providing substantial feedback to the designer.
The research concludes with the assessment of each design stage by the designer-architect, aiming at the continuous improvement of the methodologies in order to ensure its sustainability.
[1] With the term Ludus Loci, we are calling a number of concerns and proposals according to the playing methods and objects as they appear in the contemporary urban -Greek - context/landscape/space. Τhe title, based on the work of Christian Norberg-Schulz, “Genius Loci” and that of Johan Huizinga “Homo Ludens” refers to the “playful” wittiness/spirit of the place.
Article Details
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- THEMATIC FIELD ΙΙ & ΙΙΙ The multimodal intersection of urban and educational spaces & The city as a learning environment
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