Featured posts
News & Events
Playing the Archive
I was recently in London for a conference in the brilliant and ambitious research project “Playing the Archive”, a project built on the immense legacy of “The Opies”.
Knowledge & Reflection
We Can’t Force Play
Due to the unpredictable nature of play, we can’t say exactly what will happen when we play, where we end up or “what we get out of it”. We can’t even guarantee that play will happen at all – and that’s ok.
Society & Politics
Play Against Instrumentalization
Maybe play can remind us that the otherwise widespread instrumentalization can be resisted? That there is indeed more to life and to democracy than maximizing profits?
About CounterPlay
The “What/Why” of CounterPlay
Many people ask: “What is “CounterPlay”? Why should I consider participating?” Read more for an attempt at answering those questions.
Recent posts
Play Against Instrumentalization
Maybe play can remind us that the otherwise widespread instrumentalization can be resisted? That there is indeed more to life and to democracy than maximizing profits?
The Politics of Play
Some might say that this whole thing about “play and democracy” is a misunderstanding, forcing play into a space, where it doesn’t belong: the realm of politics. What if play is already always political by nature?
Recognizing the Other
I recently asked if play can save democracy, marking the first steps on my journey to explore what I already at the outset consider a deep kinship shared by play and democracy. As promised, there is no clear answer in sight, but some patterns and questions are...
Can Play Save Democracy?
Can play save democracy? It’s a big question and one that I’m afraid I can’t answer in the affirmative. Not yet, probably never. So what if even the best we can ever do will always fall short of “saving” democracy, if we can only hope to keep it alive, or, better yet, to make it come alive?
The “What/Why” of CounterPlay
Many people ask: “What is “CounterPlay”? Why should I consider participating?” Read more for an attempt at answering those questions.
We Can’t Force Play
Due to the unpredictable nature of play, we can’t say exactly what will happen when we play, where we end up or “what we get out of it”. We can’t even guarantee that play will happen at all – and that’s ok.
Playing the Archive
I was recently in London for a conference in the brilliant and ambitious research project “Playing the Archive”, a project built on the immense legacy of “The Opies”.
Loving the Play Community
Reflections on the Playable City Tokyo conference and the talk I gave there about cultivating play communities.
Playing at the Edge
The theme of CounterPlay ’19 is “playing at the edge”, and we welcome different forms of proposals that reflect this in one way or another. As always, we are eager to explore play from as many different angles as possible, building on our three pillars: playful learning, playful working and playful living.
Playful Arts Festival 2018
When I was recently driving back from Playful Arts Festival in Den Bosch, the Netherlands, even the dreadful traffic on the Autobahn was not nearly enough to kill my enthusiasm for this great event!