Art / News
From traditional Somali weaving to hugging inflatable robots
Playable City Week is “designed to animate the city, fire imagination and spark vital conversations around inclusion, surveillance, climate change and the kind of cities we want to live in”.
From July 3 to 9, six “playful creative technology prototypes” will pop up at various locations around Bristol.
Playable City began in Bristol in 2012 and has since gone global. It’s a partnership between Watershed and MyWorld, who are once again inviting people to play in our city.
is needed now More than ever
These are installations that will be coming to Bristol in 2023:
- Hug huge inflatable robots in Brandon Hill
- Party hard with an interdimensional group of rebellious fireflies bursting out of a mural at Lakota
- Play a street-based game at M Shed that challenges anyone to avoid being detected by an AI-powered camera
- Turn trees into living sculptures that ‘breathe’ in Queen Square using only your own movements
- Immerse yourself in the beauty of traditional Somali weaving and songs at Trinity Community Garden
- Experience an interactive pavement that transforms the ground beneath your feet through light, sound and play at Watershed
The House of Weaving Songs will be in Trinity’s garden – photo: Dhaqan Collective
Watershed research lead, Furaha Asani, said: “We’ve spent the past few months in an intensive R&D process – the sandbox – where teams have gotten the chance to learn, build and test their prototypes.
“The teams have been supported by an amazing panel of industry advisors and have also been friendly sounding boards for one another.
“It’s been a fun, challenging and playful process and we’re really excited for you all to see and play with the final projects.”
Designing Squeeze Me has made us @airgiantsHQ look at street furniture across the city differently. It’s amazing to see public spaces with fresh eyes – as places of possibility for interaction and fun & working with what’s already in place and building in something unexpected. pic.twitter.com/EuGXqPAAkY
— Playable City (@PlayableCity) June 12, 2023
MyWorld operations Ddirector, Oscar De Mello, added: “It’s been genuinely inspiring to see these Playable Cities projects come to life.
“The companies and individuals involved each bring a unique perspective and design approach to their installations and the results show the range of creative talent and skill available here in the West of England.
“Huge thanks to Watershed for enabling this opportunity, and I can’t wait to go and play!”
To find out more about Playable City visit: www.playablecity.com
Main photo: Air Giants
Read next:
- ‘Bristol at the forefront of Playable City’
- Playing with shadows across Bristol
- An ode to Watershed’s new gender neutral toilets
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