During recent months, playgrounds in most of the world have been lock-down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although in some countries the rules have been relaxed and some protection measures have been established, they still remain closed in various parts of the planet.
My children are now mature adults and I have already forgotten the way they played, but I can see again with my grandchildren how they can be very innovative and able to improvise new play modes, in any situation and with any element that they have at hand. The reason is that play is very important for children and essential for their learning and development of physical, sensory, communication and social interaction skills.
The situation caused by the coronavirus, with 80% of playgrounds closed in almost all countries due to health needs of social distancing, has made more than evident the importance of play spaces for children and their families.
As a consequence of this pandemic, designers of gaming spaces should probably consider how to integrate simple “play spaces everywhere” in the urban space, because apparently this type of phenomenon may happen more frequently in the future that we can foresee.
These spaces could be simple 2D graphic elements on a thin absorbent flooring together with some small objects of mixed use such as urban furniture and sensory play elements, musical devices or 3D shapes that promote physical activity, all of them using self-cleaning natural materials such as wood, rubber or other materials easy to maintain in hygienic conditions that avoid the risk of contagion.
Until now, playground designers and landscape architects have tried to add some play value to the surfacing through graphic design and integrating the flooring theme with the playground equipment.
In this new situation, the floor itself may becomes a main protagonist.
Poured-in-place or wet pour rubber flooring allows 2D and 3D graphic elements to be easily integrated and allowing full accessibility on the urban spaces while also covering all the recreational requirements in a simple and economical way.
I’m going to start immediately a research session with my grand children to write the design specifications of such systems.
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