Short Course

Urban Play Design Camp (2 days)

Promoting play in public may be a new and effective form of community participation!

Join us at the Urban Play Design Camp which is a 2-days practical workshop to discover the techniques for creating games for cities. Students, practitioners, community organizers, activists, artists, researchers are all welcome. The Urban Play Design Camp provides participants with a hands-on practical introduction to the process of inventing, prototyping and testing playful activities in public spaces. 

Why working on games and cities? While smartphones promise to connect us with far-away people, we risk losing contact with our neighbors and with the communities close by. Play is an antidote to dull and alienating urban spaces. More and more designers, architects, and public officials are looking at games as effective tools to re-engage people with their cities. Promoting play in public may be a new and effective form of community participation.

 

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN

  • a quick intro to game design,
  • design principles for games in public urban spaces,
  • rapid prototyping for physical/digital games,
  • how to play-test a game,
  • reflections on the social effects of games in public spaces.

Covered DSS competencies:

  1. Applied Human Centered Design
  2. Interdisciplinary System Thinking
  3. Collaboration and Co-creation
  4. Create solutions for social impact

 

WHO IS THIS COURSE FOR? 

Design students, practitioners, community organizers, social activists, artists, architects. We look for participants with a playful attitude and an open mind.
Everyone is welcome: from video-game enthusiasts to those who played Monopoly for the last time ten years ago.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Location: Garage Notweg, Notweg 38, 1068 LL Amsterdam

Bring your own laptop with admin rights to install software

We are here to help you install the software half an hour before the start of the program

We can provide you an invoice after payment

Any other questions? Ask Margreet Riphagen.

COSTS

This course is available at a price of €50 to cover material costs. Two lunches and coffee are provided by the organization. Payment is waived for students and staff of the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. 

 

TRAINERS

 

Gabriele Ferri (researcher Play & Civic Media, lecturer M.Sc. Digital Design) studies how play connects people and places. As a practitioner, he develops games to make people look at cities from new points of view.
Tamara Pinos C. (PhD Candidate & Instrument Developer at the Digital Society School) has a background in computer engineering, research, making and coaching. She likes to explore the possibilities of using mixed mediums and prototyping solutions for play.
Jake Henderson (Instrument Developer at the Digital Society School) with a background in computer science, he’s a multifaceted developer, a systems engineer, and overall tech enthusiast. He enjoys most turning “we can’t do that” ideas into fruition.