London Open for Play, September 19, 22 and 23, 2012

I'll be stopping by the Gary Webb artful playfulness when I visit London next week to be part of Open for Play,  organized along with play expert Tim Gill to bring a focus on play to design events like Open House London.   I'd love to meet any of you readers and talk playgrounds at the Wednesday evening symposium (please RSVP to Tim), or the Saturday and Sunday playground tours (just show up).

Wednesday night we're at 75 Cowcross Street, London EC1M 6EL, from 6:30 - 9 pm (6 pm doors open).  Come for a free of charge event (with nibbles, thanks to Alan Baxter and Land Use Consultants!) and plenty of time for Q&A and networking.

Tim will introduce the topic of making the urban public realm playable for children, I'll follow with current playground trends and themes, Jenette Emery-Wallis of Land Use Consultants will talk about the North Hub playground planned for the Olympic Park, and Liz Kessler will cover child-friendly approaches in the public realm from her work as Public Space Coordinator, EC1 New Deal for Communities.

Do join us then, or on Saturday for visits to the anarchic Glamis Adventure playground (photo above) and the serene Kate Greenaway play garden (photo below) and Sunday for Waterlow Park and EC1 playground walks.

There are maps and tips on how to get to each site at Open House London:

EC1: http://events.londonopenhouse.org/Building/18337

Glamis AP: http://events.londonopenhouse.org/Building/18980

Waterlow: http://events.londonopenhouse.org/Building/18533

Kate Greenaway: http://events.londonopenhouse.org/Building/18981

and the seminar: http://events.londonopenhouse.org/Building/19018

Full details at the Open for Play site...hope to see you there!  And as always, if you're interested in bringing a focus on  play to design events in your own community, get in touch.