Designing with Children

This is a new and interesting database which highlights projects which have involved both designers and children working together in creative ways to create new or improved spaces.

It illustrates a wealth of approaches to including children in the design process...

Snug introduced to Kings Cross

 
The new Kings Cross development has a new 'soft play' area with lots of Snug elements for young children to play on and create with....

The new play area is adjacent to the sports pitch and Skip Garden close to York Way;
Current opening times:
Every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 10am - 4pm

Inspiring Tyres

Check out Marcus Veermans excellent website Playgroundideas for some great projects that have used old tyres to creative and playful effect...

Fabulous new playground opens in London's Olympic Park...

Just had a visit to the new Tumbling Bay playground at the Olympic Park - really impressive; LUC (Land Use Consultants) and Erect architecture have created a magnificent scheme, complete with extensive sand and water play areas, and some great gnarled wooden tree-house towers with challenging walkways and drops...here are a few photos:

...strange things in the park!

While visiting the Olympic Park yesterday we were confronted by live flower pots that squirted us with water and giant silver slugs! See this  video:

Child Art Found in Prehistoric Caves!

Fascinating research by Jess Cooney, a Cambridge archaeologist, has uncovered evidence that cave art in the form of "finger flutings" were made by children as young as 3 years old.

Within the 8km cave system in Rouffignac, France, and amongst stunning drawings of mammoths, rhinoceros and horses, these symbolic images were created 13,000 years ago by dragging fingers across the soft walls and ceilings. The research reveals that some of the flutings they studied were made by a three-year-old child, with the most prolific young artist being a girl of five.

You can watch a video of Jess Cooney describing her discoveries here.

Gold Award for Snug!

Snug has just won a gold award at the 2012 Primary Teacher awards (equipment and toys category)

This is brilliant...

Check out this video of a girl who really knows how to do interpretive dancing!

Inspiring quote...

“One should teach children to dance on a tightrope without a safety net,
to sleep at night alone under the sky, to row a boat out on the open sea.
One should teach them to imagine castles in the sky instead of houses on the ground,
to be nowhere at home but in life itself and to find security within themselves.”

- H.H. Dreiske, German poet and social worker

Thanks to Ip-d!p for highlighting this...

Fruity in Hong Kong

Anyone going to the Hong Kong Flower show 16 - 25 March?
If you do, you will not only see stuff like this from last year's event, but Snug is also going to be there courtesy of Play Concept...

Chris O'Shea

Our talented designer friend Chris O'Shea has created a fun new app which turns an iphone or ipod touch into a toy vehicle...watch the video here.

A recent interactive installation of his that also caught our eye is Body Swap - which transforms the body movements of two people projected onto a screen. The clever bit is this: the images are swapped, so that each takes control of the other! ...watch the hilarious video here.

Gillet Square in FX magazine

Last month, FX Magazine ran an article titled 'Youth Opportunities' about the need to engage young people, now more than ever, in post-riot UK. SNUG in Gillett Square was sited as an inspirational and innovative example of public space design.
See the full article here.

London snow

Kids in Hattie's neighbourhood have 'reclaimed the streets' with this curious object!

Strange landscaping in the woods

These mysterious earthworks were spotted in Sudbourne Woods in Suffolk, and are actually a Forestry Commission bike park in the process of being built from pieces of carpet and sand piles.

Snug featured in Popular Science magazine...

Snug is included in an article entitled 'State of Play - the future of fun' in the current issue of Popular Science.

Pedestrians can now loop-the-loop!

German artists Heike Mutter and Ulrich Genth have created an aerial walkway in Duisberg, Germany called 'Tiger and Turtle - Magic Mountain'. It consists of a staircase which winds like a ribbon through space in the manner of a rollercoaster, and includes an 'impossible' closed spiral loop - surely an irresistable challenge?!

It also looks amazing at night...



















































































all photographs by Heike Mutter & Ulrich Genth, via Dezeen

happy christmas playmates!

Pop-up seats and swings

Check out Urban Bricolage's coverage of various projects involving pop-up seats and swings for public spaces...(thanks to Playing Out for the link...)

"Keep Playing"

A forward-looking initiative was recently launched by Play Association Tower Hamlets that aims to get children and families to reclaim the spaces outside their homes to create playful spaces, and hopefully to change people's attitudes. They are looking for 'Play Champions' to work with families on estates there...

Many thanks to Playing Out for pointing this our way.

Possible site for re-location!

Spotted by Viv in Yorkshire...