Play:groundNYC

Governors Island | Inhabitat - Green Design, Innovation ...

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Play:ground NYC is a non-for-profit Adventure playground that has operated on New York's Governors Island since 2016 and advocates for access to space for free play.

Video Play:groundNYC

History

The idea for play:groundNYC emerged in 2014, when Eve Mosher, an artist, was chatting with an old friend, Alexander Khost, an educator and web developer, at a birthday party for one of Mr. Khost's sons. They discovered that they shared an unusual dream: to build an adventure playground in the city.

For the first 2 years of its existence in New York City the Play:groundNYC has run several pop-up playgrounds to street fairs and several parks including Fort Greene Park, Shortly, before setting up the permanent site in Roosevelt Island During play:groundNYC installed and led an indoor adventure playground in the Brooklyn Children's Museum in January and February, 2016. The installation was located on the second floor gallery and consisted of loose objects--cardboard boxes, fabrics, rope, tape, and other materials. It was staffed by playworkers.

Maps Play:groundNYC

Programs

Governors Island junk playground

On May 28, 2016, play:groundNYC opened a 15,000 square foot junk playground staffed by playworkers on Governors Island. The playground is divided into two sections: a "mud kitchen" for children ages 3 and up, and a larger "junk playground" for ages 6 and up. The mud kitchen consists of fabrics, tents, assorted toys, sticks, dirt, water, pots and pans, and mud. The junk playground contains hammers and nails, saws, shovels and other tools, tires, lumber, tarpaulin, pipes, and other materials.

Pop-up play

play:ground holds pop-up playground events in New York City. It has brought pop-up playgrounds to street fairs and several parks including Fort Greene Park, Prospect Park, Maria Hernandez Park, Governors Island, and Brower Park.

Artist residency

During January and February, 2016, play:groundNYC installed and led an indoor adventure playground in the Brooklyn Children's Museum. The installation was located on the second floor gallery and consisted of loose objects--cardboard boxes, fabrics, rope, tape, and other materials. It was staffed by playworkers.

Play advocacy

play:groundNYC hosts film screenings and panel discussions related to adventure playgrounds, playwork, "risky play," and racial, socio-economic, and other barriers to free play, such as "play-averse schooling regimes." These are generally held in museums and schools and feature The Land, a short documentary film about the nature of play, risk and hazard set in The Land, a Welsh "adventure" playground.