"Act like a child" were the first words Professor Streicht spoke to us at the start of the course. Our assignment was to select a material and alter it in some way, pushing its boundaries of form or function.

While many of my peers chose to burn, cut, or dye their materials, I opted to wrap leather around wire, creating a malleable composite that offered both flexibility and structure.

Next, we were challenged to build upon our chosen material, crafting a structure approximately the size of two fists. I continued working with the leather, incorporating a woven design that balanced the material's inherent stiffness with a sense of structure. The result was both visually appealing and functionally robust, highlighting the material's natural qualities while enhancing its aesthetic value.

In week three, we were tasked with creating an expanded version of our structure, now roughly the size of a shoebox. I experimented with varying weave scales and structural shapes, ultimately developing a form that resembled a playground.

This concept became the foundation and inspiration for my final project.

In week four, we were encouraged to embrace a sense of playful experimentation with our materials, free from the expectation of a specific outcome. I decided to approach this iteration with a more whimsical mindset, stepping away from the rigid structure of the previous version and allowing for greater fluidity and creativity in the design.

After several weeks of uncertain exploration, we were finally assigned a space within one of The New School’s academic buildings to design the layout.

I created a scaled model using foam boards, drawing inspiration from my previous iterations to develop a single-wired playground structure that would envelop the entire space. The woven elements from earlier designs were integrated into the walls, evoking the appearance of a fence. The color palette of the fence was carefully selected to mirror the sky, reinforcing the theme and atmosphere of the space.

The final project challenged me to thoughtfully consider how the space would be experienced. How would visitors navigate it? What emotions would it evoke? What sense of imagination would it inspire upon entry?

I aimed for the leather material to define the space while maintaining a lighthearted, playful quality. To enhance this, I incorporated a leather floor with organic shapes beneath each playground structure, mimicking the soft padding found in real playgrounds.

For the final presentation, I displayed both the physical model and photographs, adding a personal touch by including miniature cutouts of myself suspended from the structures. This, combined with the whimsical nature of the surrounding images, reinforced the overarching theme of play. I fully embraced Professor Streicht’s words—“Act like a child”—and carried that philosophy throughout the entire course.