THE RED PLANET PLAYSCAPE
19 Mar 2018
A public space intervention, the Red Planet playspace sits within one of the biggest shopping centres in Shanghai and fosters public interaction and enhances the shopping experience.
Designed by 100architects to attract customers and encourage community interaction within the privately-owned public space with the open-air retail spaces, the installation is an unusual playground with organised spaces for both kids and adults.
The proposal arose “from a surreal approach, from the intention of breaking the conventional rules of perception, of what is already conceived as reality, in order to trigger kids’ imagination and creativity as well as immersing them in a colourful experience,” explain the architects. 
The Red Planet playspace features a bubbling basketball field that serves as a surreal playground, providing an artificial topography for playing, climbing, sliding, sitting, laying, and many other processes that stem from the kids’ own imaginations regarding how to colonise and use the space in ways the architects didn’t first imagine. 
To enhance the narrative of the environment, a bent basketball basket was introduced, with led lights to illuminate the area. Other features, such as a racing track, define the border of the installation. Chalkboard pyramids, benches for parents, and other random games complement the full scope of fun activities that kids and adults are able to undertake. 
The monochromatic colour treatment in shades of red was also applied on top of existing urban furniture and decorative elements from the space, with the aim of generating a more immersive experience around the ‘red planet’. 
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