FACT Gallery: The Social Playground

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The Social Playground
Fun in the galleries...
An interactive landscape created by local community groups in collaboration with design/artist collective Aberrant Architecture. The Social Playground is a giant game made up of seven ‘obstacles’ that represent various groups FACT work with, including residents from Anfield/Breckfield, Freehand (FACT’s young people’s programme), tenantspin (our long-running community media project), The Academy of St Francis of Assisi’s Network Enterprise Team and Knowsley Community College.

FACT’s Collaboration Programme has been working with communities across Merseyside for over 20 years. The Social Playground is a celebration of this work and provides the chance for visitors to experience the richness of some of FACT’s less visible work.

Each obstacle is a landmark for visitors to explore, and was designed through a series of workshops led by Aberrant Architecture with community groups and partners who regularly collaborate with FACT. Together they form an architectural representation of FACT’s long-term collaborations and their relationship to the city.

The designs for each obstacle reference Liverpool landmarks including Coronation Court tower block, once Liverpool’s oldest tower block and site of tenantspin’s first webcast, the Everyman theatre, St Lukes Church (bombed out church), a coal drop at Garston Docks, the Futurist cinema and a local pub.

Visitors are invited to navigate each obstacle through the traditional game of egg rolling, while exploring sample projects including sound pieces, short films, images and a Tweeting garden.

Featuring work created with artists/filmmakers Aberrant Architecture, Alex Harrison, Alison Kershaw, Carl Davies, Chris Watson, Gina Czarnecki, Jaqueline Passmore, Jess Carver, Ross Daziel & Washington Buckley.

SHINS School: Harry Dobbs Design

Remodelling education: accessible learning and play-scapes
South Harringay Infant and Nursery School, London N4 RIBA/Design for Education Play Award 2009

From Design Charette to Commission (Phase 1 currently under construction): ‘Our school takes pride in including the whole school community, and it was apparent from the beginning that the architect team supports working like this. They came up with ideas that we could implement immediately using our own school resources. I feel the architect team can also help create a much needed “master plan” for the playground that can be broken down into sections so we can fundraise accordingly. I’d like to move forward on this project because it’s seemed there was a real genuine interest from the architect team, and that they felt together we could create something very special and unique for the children of South Harringay Infants School.’ Xanthe, parent & govenor, South Harringay Infant and Nursery School.

The redesign for the playground came across in ideas using workshops with the children at the school. They wanted this idea of sanctuaries that were high up and protected, This was an idea that was used when designing the playground.

Aberrant Architecture FACT gallery Liverpool

For more info go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-12988893

South Kilburn Swapshop Interior Visual

The South Kilburn Swap Shop is a collaborative marketplace in which the inhabitants of South Kilburn and the wider area can explore the rising trend of collaborative consumption: an explosion in sharing, bartering, lending, trading and swapping. People can meet and exchange goods for a range of different products and services.