This wooden structure on the Japanese island of Hokkaido has been conceived as a simulated forest. For the design of the temporary project — an immersive play area for children — architect Jun Igarashi teamed up with YCAM Interlab, a group of researchers and developers at Yamaguchi center fo
r arts and media. Located among the trees of Sapporo’s Odori park, the project uses locally sourced timber to create a series of conne
cted ramps, pathways, and plateaus.
During its stay in the park, workshops were held where children were asked to make suggestions as to which features they would like to see added to the playground. designed as an alternative to more orthodox configurations, Igarashi’s design encourages children to engage more freely and intuitively with the apparatus. ‘while simply coming up with ideas for the project, I thought that an orthodox playground was out of the question,’ Jun Igarashi told Shift magazine.‘When children play in nature with the sheer power of their imagination, they discover novel ways to play with things they take from the environment, like in a forest for example.’
