Into the wild

Openfabric and Dmau studio completed an urban park and playground based on the distinction between the build environment and the wild nature, teaching children how to move between the two.

Openfabric and Dmau studio have created an urban park at The Hague, The Netherlands, that seeks to juxtapose natural elements and the built environment. The design is marked by an urban exterior and a wild natural interior, each space containing a different type of playground.

The formal exterior is a place for sports and structured games, while the more natural interior encourages children to be free to construct and destruct their own environment using natural materials. “Play is about finding ones place in the world and making sense of that world”, the architects explain.

A boundary ‘ribbon’ between the two spaces wraps and protects the interior, while adapting towards the exterior to allow games and integrate traditional playground elements. This space works as a threshold, a place where children learn how to move between the natural environment and the built one: an essential childhood experience that is often missing in many urban areas.

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Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, The Hague, 2015. Photo Daryl Mulvihill

Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, The Hague, 2015. Photo Daryl Mulvihill

Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, The Hague, 2015. Photo Jacopo Gennari Feslikenian

Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, siteplan

Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, sections

Openfabric and Dmau, Into the wild urban park and playground, diagram

Into the Wild, The Hague, The Netherlands
Architects: Openfabric, Dmau
Team: Francesco Garofalo, Daryl Mulvihill, Barbara Costantino
Client: The Hague Municipality, Richard Krajicek Foundation
Project consultant: Arcadis
Area: 5,100 sqm
Completion: 2015

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