1∕7
The cover of my thesis is a collage using images from the Amsterdam City Archive of Aldo van Eyck’s playgrounds in Amsterdam.
This collage of photos was taken by my sister, Anna Saunders, at a skate park in Austin Texas. These images accompany my introduction which tells the story of a trip to the skate park in search of play.
This collage depicting children at play accompanies my first chapter which addresses the definition of the word “play”, as well as research on psychology and child psychology. The collage uses images taken by Ryuji Inoue of the KO Kindergarten in Matsuyama, Japan.
The collage that accompanies my second chapter is a collage using images from the cover of Henri Lefebvre’s Right to the City, and a Guider Psychogeographique de Paris, inspired by Guy Debord’s theory of Derive. This chapter addresses the discussion of play in post-World War 2 documentation and theory, looking specifically at Johan Huizinga’s Homo Ludens, Lefebvre, and the Situationists.
The collage that accompanies my third chapter uses an image from the exhibition Modellen at the Moderna Museet in Stockholm, 1968. In this chapter I look at built examples and artistic representations of play in the post-World War 2 landscape, looking specifically at Constant Niewenhuys’ New Babylon, Palle Nielson’s Modellen, and Aldo van Eyck’s playgrounds.
The image that accompanies my postscript depicts park goers at Park am Gleisedrick in Berlin. In this chapter I look at contemporary examples of trends, in the built environment and beyond, that incorporate elements of play.
The back cover of my thesis also uses images from the Amsterdam City Archive of Aldo van Eyck’s playgrounds in Amsterdam. This collage is meant to address the further research that my thesis prompts: that we are still in search of play, and that the experience for women and girls in play spaces is limiting.
In my senior thesis titled In Search of Play, I researched the importance and relevance of play in society through the lens of psychology, history, theory, and urban design. Through my work I aim to push the idea that play is relevant in the lives of adults, and the built environment should afford spaces that promote play for people of all ages. Further, my thesis addresses the realities of gender biases in play, and sets up a platform for further research on the subject.