Playful Urban Landscapes at Oslo Architecture Triennale
Partner Stephen Richards delivered to a packed auditorium on 4 November at the Oslo Architecture Triennale 2022, 'Playful Cityscapes'. The conference examined how city life can be created in urban outdoor spaces that invite play and stay for all ages.
The invitation came from Statsbygg, the Norwegian directorate of public construction and property. The event was part of the New Government Quarter project which supports urban repair, provide safe and good workplaces for the ministries, and an open and green urban space for Oslo's residents.
The breakfast seminar at which Stephen presented included:
"Neighbourhood, play and community places" by Christian Pagh, director and chief curator of the Oslo Architecture Triennale
"Landscape for play" by Helle Nebelong, landscape architect from Denmark, who focuses on children's playgrounds
"How can we activate spaces for play and living through public art?" by Nina Sørlie, curator for the Møller Collection and for Møller Eiendom, whose interest is public art.
Stephen's presentation, 'Playful Urban Landscapes', covered design principles for creating playful spaces in the city, including
- key principles for playful outdoor spaces in an urban context
- creating outdoor spaces that are attractive day and night
- encouraging people to spend quality time outdoors
- how to activate people of all age groups
- engaging the community in the design process
- climate change resilience.
He described relevant examples of Gillespies work, including St Helen's Square, and the Park and South Gardens at Elephant Park.
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