Wild

The construction of Eagle's land play space became a first part of the project of public places renovation in Bolshoe Kuziomkino village. The project was carried out in a tight cooperation with local residents. This helped us to find nonstandard decision: a natural playground that will become a place for meetings of the whole village.

The nearest wildlife preserve that is well-known for diversity of birds became a source of inspiration for architects. Some playing elements recall nests.

The playground consists of three areas: - Sand glade for younger kids equipped with a sand pouring system, a sandbox & a slide. - Meadow for elementary school kids with a climbing frame & a nest that symbolizes a house of eagle. - Third section intended for 7-15 years old children is a complex of towers connected with bridges.

Families living in Bogatye Saby wanted to have a space that would serve as a playground and sports center, while also acting as focal point of the park and point of interest for the town.

Playground “The Shell” is built upon the riverbank of shallow river Sabinka. Inspired by the empty shell of a giant mollusk, the design is evocative of a time when the river was still fully flowing. Play shell is a nice example of bionic architecture: 8 meters high metal spin built as parametric form generated with an algorithm of a real shell.

Both the exterior and interior of the shell is full of rope climbing elements. Design of wood facing was developed to create interesting lighting effects and effective airflow. At night, the shell is just barely lit from the inside, allowing the faint light to shimmer through the gaps in the wood facing. Thus, the experience of the shell is vastly different between day and evening.

The site is located in the park in front of House of Culture. Said Galeeva, which was recently restored, preserving the atmosphere of the Soviet era. While designing the site, we didn’t want anything to distract attention from its natural landscape. Therefore, playground areas are dispersed discreetly into four clearings of different sizes, connected by paths. All objects are harmoniously inscribed in the landscape and do not stand out against its background.

Thanks to natural colors and soft shapes, the play space does not dominate the surrounding nature, but emphasizes its beauty, while enriching the palette of tactile, visual, and motor stimuli. There is everything you need to enjoy the game and train agility for children of different ages – a windbreak, a cluster of huge boulders, rope nets and bridges, slides, swings.

The objects on this playground look like trees which have come alive, walked out of the park, and pretended to be playground constructions.This playground is a stunning example of a natural playground. While approaching the playground visitors get the impression that the forest itself decided to have fun and play with the kids.

Several bizarre towers, made of natural tree trunks, standing up straight or upside down, are the focal point of the playground. It is not an elementary task to reach the top. Instead of conventional steps, there is a system of ropes and branches. Once on the top, one can start a journey along the suspension bridges.

The playground blends seamlessly into the landscape. It occupies several meadows of the park: a climbing system and fireplace occupy the whole meadow, the windbreak and stumps frame the meadows, while towels and suspension bridges are located above the trees and connect the meadows with each other.

This playground was inspired by Russian Avant Garde art. The plan of the playground is reminiscent of Kandinsky’s famous compositions: The ideal circle of the wooden deck is crossed by the daring straight line of the climbing tunnel which rests on the support of trees. From a 3D perspective, the trees appear to be marching through the playground like some bizarre creatures.

The playground is designed for kids from 3 to 12 years old. Its most attractive feature is a system of tunnels which separates the playground into two parts and ends with a tower and a slide. One part of the playground hosts a climbing system, swings, and a sand play area. The other part features various areas for resting in the shade.

This playground is very compact and yet stuffed with a variety of attractions. An intrigue is added by one special tree that seemingly marches out of the deck circle as if intending to escape back to the forest.

This playground is in the very heart of the city park. A combination of metallic towers with daring geometrical forms and whimsical wooden elements comprises its uniqueness and attractiveness.

On this playground you will find extensive play zones with ropes and climbing nets, giant slopes and labyrinths, as well as secluded areas with small scale play elements such as sand pouring stations and stumps. Besides these, there is an abundance of dynamic elements loved by children of all ages: swings and balance boards.

Don’t-Fall-Out-Nest was created for Eco_Tektonika festival in Summer 2016 and occupied a total space of 100 sq.m. Our main task was to design a children’s playing complex for children to stay in for a while which would at the same time be an objet d’art to create a point of attraction and a landmark.

The play complex comprises three diverse shapes: a giant nest with net bottom and a cozy cocoon made of barked larch and rising on its own support legs, a miniature nest for the smallest visitors mounted on springing suspenders, and a 25-meter knitted climbing net, which connects all other elements.

This new unconventional solution completely revamps the phenomenon of risk and feat: the huge play nest catches anyone who attempts to jump out of the nest, and immerses them into a curious world of nest adventures. The net hands to the ground, resembling a tremendous web where even a toddler can be left safely: hammock-like entries prevent anyone from falling out of it, at the same time providing quick access from the ground.

Ingedients:
2 pieces of wooden play equipment and a giant knitted climbing net, as well as courage and thirst for climbing

Location:
Eco-Park Jasnoye Pole

Size: 100 m²

Playgrounds located in a natural reserve are quite different from ordinary urban ones, not only because of their appearance, but also because of their tasks.

Eco-friendly play space for children in Izmailovskiy Park created by Chekharda Bureau is not just a natural playing area for the younger generation, but also a public space for all park visitors.

Playing shapes and non-conventional art elements fit for people of all ages make it a place where children and grown-ups can shake their usual walk in the park with interesting activities, while recreating and educating themselves with comfort in a natural environment.

At Archstoyanie Kids festival in 2015 curated by Andrey Bartenev, Chekharda Bureau created and build Ripening Quarter complex, a play system of three different nests located on three levels, which return both children and grown-ups to the important life period of “hatching”.

Nest is a symbol of the origin of life and first growth, and the whole arrangement meets the visitors at the entry to the festival, bathing them in infancy,“nestlinghood”, and giving them a starting point to grow from one festival object to another.

Thanks to the linear structure of the festival space, the Hatching Quarter is also the last thing on the path of visitors, giving the mature and experienced personality the last chance to relive the light and tender childhood...

In the city park of Kazan, right in the center of a meadow stands a giant all- season slide. Its shape resembles that of a fox which warily peeks out of the forest. It also serves as an observation tower overlooking the forest. The slide is made of stainless steel which allows for smooth sliding and sledding.

The space below the slope has been turned into a playground complex. Here younger kids can play with their parents, experience unusual bubble and nest swings, or climb the hammock nets and climbing wall.

Giant Mushrooms is a multilevel playspace with a total area over 2,000 sq.m. in Gorkinsko-Ometyevskiy forest, Kazan. This is the first playground which was created right in the woods and not in a clearing!

This piece of playing forest combines two levels.Top level is mounted over existing trees and gives a chance to explore natural environment of the forest. Lower level is organised right on the ground and has a rich play core with activities more suitable for younger kids.

The two levels are connected with vertical climbing labyrinths in the bodies of three giant mushrooms. All trees also form an integral part of the playground and were carefully preserved during the construction.

Once upon a time there were fruit orchards in this place in the Osanovskaya Grove Park in Vologda. Over time, they fell into decay. As part of the grove development program, the Blooming Garden playground appeared in a clearing surrounded by apple trees.

The main element of the site resembles a sprawling apple tree. Inside there are real rope labyrinths and slides, you can climb up to the top and descend to the ground. But if today it is an apple tree, then tomorrow this construction of logs can become a ship, and the day after tomorrow — a spider web: children are able to come up with hundreds of scenarios if the architects give them such an opportunity and do not overload the project with unambiguous forms.

Cylindrical volumes of the playing object are surrounded by large branching trunks of several trees, which create a fascinating natural play space. The crown nets forms the image of a flowering tree, simultaneously performing a restrictive function. The supports for the play structures are painted in white, refering to the traditional whitewashing of the trunks of garden trees.

The playground has become a recreation place for the entire district, where parents and children can explore the world, get involved in nature, come up with new play scenarios.

Customer:

Urban Environment Laboratory, Vologda