The City is For Play

Artist: Basurama Collective
Location: Viadulto do Chá, São Paulo, Brazil
Year of completion: 2007
Researcher: Gabriela Ribeiro

The child can imagine a toy on any object and a game in any situation, the imagination is the most funny tool that can exist in a human being, and when it is in their first years of life is a living and continuousthing, but that loses as growth, development of criteria and facing the problems of adulthood. But contact with the art can awaken many ways related to creativity, this which is closely linked to the imagination, and when it occurs the encounter between art and the environments they create are set where the human being, be of any age, act creatively and intuitive. These environments are not governed by the laws of the adult world: the surface to move is not only the ground, interaction with strangers is possible and waste do not exist.

Basurama, a collective that carries art and design projects for social change through playful and participative strategies. Starring in their projects the reuse of materials derived from waste and processes related to their production in the consumer society. Currently works as a network of established groups in Boston, Buenos Aires, Madrid and São Paulo. And as a way of providing a place of playfulness and freedom in public space, created the work "The City is For Play", appropriating famous and chaotic places in the city of São Paulo, as the “Viaduto do Chá”, in “Vale do Anhangabaú” and the “Minhocão” (The highest part of Costa e Silva), both served structure for installing playgrounds created from materials that can be found in abundance in any part of the city as strings, banners and cut discarded tires.

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And even made available on the internet the whole process to build them. Providing that any group can replicate the project in other places, making your own neighborhood. The installation was carried out in the “Festival Baixo Centro” (independent festival of art and culture in São Paulo) during the 2013 edition of the “Virada Cultural” (event sponsored by the Government and City Hall, which provides a wide range of musical, theatrical and artistic attractions in a period uninterrupted 24 hours), and in 2015 as part of the event "month of Independent Culture".

The collective, in announcing the work on your website is age appropriate recommendation to play in the installation: toy for children from 0 to 99 years. And in the period in which the installation was present in the city was just that it was possible to see all took advantage of the swings and played much regardless of age or social class, there was even the participation of many homeless people. It was possible in some time to see a long line with people eager to enjoy the work, who helped push the swing, and many onlookers surrounding the place to enjoy the facility, in any case, both the interaction as the assessment is made possible.

With the work, the playful view of the city was not only possible, but also palpable. Amid gray and charged landscape of concrete stiffness and vertical buildings, people were mild, and the playful swing seemed to fly in the midst of “Vale do Anhangabaú” and each time felt more comfortable in that condition, most drove their bodies to achieve greater heights.

And even made available on the internet the whole process to build them. Providing that any group can replicate the project in other places, making your own neighborhood. The installation was carried out in the “Festival Baixo Centro” (independent festival of art and culture in São Paulo) during the 2013 edition of the “Virada Cultural” (event sponsored by the Government and City Hall, which provides a wide range of musical, theatrical and artistic attractions in a period uninterrupted 24 hours), and in 2015 as part of the event "month of Independent Culture".

The collective, in announcing the work on your website is age appropriate recommendation to play in the installation: toy for children from 0 to 99 years. And in the period in which the installation was present in the city was just that it was possible to see all took advantage of the swings and played much regardless of age or social class, there was even the participation of many homeless people. It was possible in some time to see a long line with people eager to enjoy the work, who helped push the swing, and many onlookers surrounding the place to enjoy the facility, in any case, both the interaction as the assessment is made possible.

With the work, the playful view of the city was not only possible, but also palpable. Amid gray and charged landscape of concrete stiffness and vertical buildings, people were mild, and the playful swing seemed to fly in the midst of “Vale do Anhangabaú” and each time felt more comfortable in that condition, most drove their bodies to achieve greater heights.

The work was thought to be something simple to implement and at the same time reuse materials, characteristics that have always been present in Basurama projects. The intention was also to honor two great architects, artists, designers Elvira de Almeida and Lina Bo Bardi, who created this kind of places that awaken the playful and creative. With these inspirations created the site-specific which brings the interaction through the balance of play.

All copyright belongs to Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, Shanghai University.

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