The Playground designed by our Studio is located on the BOTANICA estate in Jelitkowo – one of the districts of the city of Gdańsk . The estate is placed in the heart of the seaside area, on the border of two cities: Gdańsk and Sopot. It is located five-minutes from the beach, near the seaside promenade, where you can walk to the pier in Sopot and Gdańsk Brzeźno. Jelitkowo, a well-known resort, famous from the beginning of the XXth century as a place for rest and recreation. For those, who enjoy the attractiveness of a garden-city. Urban planning was strongly associated with botany and nature, hence the name of the estate “Botanica”, which is a name closely related to nature, lush greenery and a variety of plant species. Therefore, our main idea when designing the Playground, was to create a cosy space with lots of lush, rich greenery.
The Playground we designed, is very firmly embedded in the housing estate area, in terms of the architecture and scale of the entire investment and project. The form of the houses and their roofs refers to the simple form of the ridge of buildings, that are characteristic for this part of the city. The Playground is located in the recreation and sports area of the estate, however, its area is not very large, when compared to the area of the whole estate. Due to the spatial conditions, the aesthetic requirements of the investor, and for the benefit of future users, we decided to design an original area for outdoor play and recreation, from scratch, reaching to the roots and drawing inspiration from the specific place where it is located.
Therefore, a system of wooden decks was created and placed on a “sandy beach”. This system of terraces connects several wooden houses with various functions, leading us to tunnels hidden in rising greenery. Our project offers an interesting space, which is an invitation to play, which is giving freedom of interpretation, creativity and choice, and not a space filled with ready-made toys from catalogues. The playground is designed in such a way, that it will stimulate the imagination and engage all the senses, therefore, all the materials used are natural and simple – such as wood, sand, stones, gravel, together with a variety of plants, vegetation with various aromas, colours and textures of leaves. Other than the space dedicated strictly for children. We have also arranged an easily accessible and comfortable rest spot for parents, where there are benches placed under the trees. The whole area is designed for families.
This playground consists not only of various devices, it is also a combination of wooden houses surrounded with greenery. This space is almost immersed in greenery and firmly embedded in its location. The selection of plants was made in such a way as to ensure an attractive display throughout the year, creating a picture of a total “garden-estate”. Therefore, all the plants, even in winter, look beautiful with their decorative barks, evergreen leaves or dried flowers of the perennial plants. Our original Playground is located right in the centre – shrouded with that rich greenery.
Name of the project: BOTANICA PLAYGROUND
Project category (Public Project, Infrastructure, Residential housing park, Private garden, Hospitality): SCHOOLS AND PLAYGROUNDS
Role of the entrant in the project: landscape architecture, we designed whole playground with surroundings
Project location: POLAND, Gdańsk, Bursztynowa Street
Design year: 2017
Year Built: 2019
