I am preoccupied by the ways play and games connect to the physical form of cities. Here’s one way to look at it: architects are influenced by the surprising new uses of existing constructions. For example, there’s a connection between a swimming pool like this one… Photo (cc) Mallix …and this playground designed by Carve [...]
Tag Archives: architecture
Pools connected to playgrounds
Posted in Thoughts Also tagged play, playgrounds, skateparks, swimming pools, transformations Comments closed
“New ideas must use old buildings”
The other day I had dinner at a radio-station that was turned into a restaurant. My favorite events venue in Amsterdam used to be a printing press. And friends of mine are turning a massive sports hall into creative work spaces. The uses buildings were intended for, and what they’re actually used for, vary greatly. [...]
Posted in Thoughts Also tagged adaptation, cities, creativity, Jane Jacobs, law, play, politics, reuse, Stewart Brand, Vacant NL Comments closed
A few predictions for the future of urban games
On Wednesday 14 April I co-hosted the first Best Scene in Town workshop on invitation of Waag Society’s Ronald Lenz. The other co-host was The Mobile City‘s Martijn de Waal. Best Scene in Town is a design contest wherein participants are asked to create an urban game, narrative experience or tour using 7scenes; Waag Society’s [...]
Posted in Talks Also tagged 7scenes, ARGs, game design, games, play, urbanism, Waag Society, workshops Comments closed
Shaping the city with urban games at Visible Cities #03
Last week I had the pleasure of being able to speak at Visible Cities, which is a series of events on emerging technologies and the city. The third edition looked at urban gaming and brought together architects, designers and technologists to explore how these games can be used to shape cities. Michiel de Lange kicked [...]
Posted in Talks Also tagged cities, game design, games, play, urbanism, Visible Cities Comments closed
Talking about game design at Visible Cities #03
Head over to TrouwAmsterdam tomorrow for what is sure to be another interesting Visible Cities. I can’t think of another event in NL at the moment that is more at the forefront of urbanism and interaction design. So I’m pleased to announce I’ll be there to provide a short overview of what we’ve been up [...]
Posted in Upcoming Also tagged cities, game design, interaction design, TrouwAmsterdam, urbanism, Visible Cities Comments closed
Architects vs. Game Designers – Fight!
If you’re like me and consider the city to be a playground, then I’d love to have you join me in two weeks at the Waag for the first Best Scene in Town workshop. The aim of this event is to explore the potential of location-based media in the city. We’re looking for participants with [...]
Posted in Upcoming Also tagged 7scenes, cities, game design, games, locative, Martijn de Waal, play, Ronald Lenz, The Mobile City, urbanism, Waag Society, workshops Comments closed
Six games about architecture
I went looking for a few recent examples of games that deal with architectural themes in some way. I pulled these mostly from a few of the major street games festivals that are out there, such as Come Out & Play, Hide & Seek, Igfest and You Are GO! Just from this small sample size [...]