Ian Potter Children's WILD PLAY Garden
On an undulating hillside within Centennial Park one enters a secret garden in which the play elements merge with the landscape setting, creating a journey of discovery for children and their families. It breaks out of the usual paradigm in which the play structures stand in isolation for children to play whilst the parents sit around the periphery. The inventive, site specific play elements are made of natural materials. They include a tree house and climbing structure with a slippery slide, water-play ponds and fountains, bamboo tunnels and maze-like spaces, timber beam balance structures arranged to represent the Centennial Park eel.
The rich and diverse planting that define the sequence of spaces is layered to give a sense of enclosure and changing perspectives for small children and adults. It also provides a place for environmental education: an important and innovative dimension in playground design. The setting for informal play also provides attractive, shaded family picnic areas. Such an extraordinary achievement would not have been possible without the close collaboration with Centennial Parklands and the Foundation.
PROJECT NAME: IAN POTTER CHILDREN’S WILD PLAY GARDEN
AWARD CATEGORY: PLAY SPACES
AWARDS:
2018 NATIONAL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AWARD
2018 NSW AWARD OF EXCELLENCE