The area outside V&A Dundee has been transformed into a giant interactive painted playground for the young and young at heart.
As part of a collaboration with Abertay University, a colourful chalk playscape has been laid down to show the importance of playing together, even when you can’t be physically close.
The 150 square metre feature has been created by Abertay lecturers Dr Lynn Love and Dr Mona Bozdog to allow visitors to interact and play games with one another while maintaining two-metre social distancing.
It includes a painted garden and Echo soundscape which takes advantage of V&A Dundee’s unique architecture.
The playscape is part of a free exhibition which will open at the attraction later this month as the city’s recovery from the coronavirus crisis continues.
Now Accepting Contactless: Design in a Global Pandemic will bring together objects revealing the many ways designers and communities have used their skills to adapt to life during the pandemic.
Dr Lynn Love, from Abertay’s world-renowned School of Design and Informatics, said: “Although a lot of awful things have come out of the pandemic, one thing that has returned is a sense of community.
“I’m excited to see how people interact with the playscape.
“Not only will people be able to enjoy the games we’ve created, the design allows people to get creative and come up with their own unique games.”
Visitors will be able to add their touch to leaves in the chalk garden.
The project has been inspired by #oneplaything, an international online movement that encourages engagement with space through playful interventions, a community Dr Love has been an active participant in.
She added: “The work that Mona and I do usually encourages people to interact with one another while being physically close together.
“The pandemic means we’ve had to think a lot about how we can maintain these playful interactions in a safe way.
“We’ve relished the opportunity of bringing some of these ideas to the heart of Dundee, and we hope that it will allow families and visitors to engage, enjoy and perhaps feel inspired.”
Kirsty Hassard of V&A Dundee, the curator of Now Accepting Contactless, said: “It’s been great to work together with Lynn and Mona on realising the project. Their Chalk Playscape will encourage visitors to think about and interact with the space around the museum in new ways.
We wanted the new exhibition to occupy spaces within and out with the building, and hope visitors will enjoy visiting and interacting with it.”
The Chalk Playscape will remain outside V&A Dundee until mid-January next year.
