Featured posts
News & Events
Loving the Play Community
Reflections on the Playable City Tokyo conference and the talk I gave there about cultivating play communities.
Knowledge & Reflection
The Player as Funambulist
While a funambulist and a player knows that any state of equilibrium can only ever be momentary, a proper citizen in 2018 is taught to believe that if only the right systems, models and rules are applied and followed, no balancing is required.
Society & Politics
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?
About CounterPlay
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.
Recent posts
Materials and Junk-yard Play
Together with our friends Helle Marie Skovbjerg and Ann Charlotte Thorsted, we have formed a small play club and we recently hosted our second event to play with materials and celebrate junk-yard playgrounds.
From Biel with love
When I came home from the Pro Juventute play festival a few weeks ago, my head was full of impressions, thoughts and ideas – as it always happens after participating in lovely play events. I was particularly struck by the “Playable Esplanade”, where so much joyous play took place.
Celebrating Play Professors
May 1st Helle Marie Skovbjerg, along with her Dutch colleague, Tilde Bekker, gave their inaugural lectures at Design School Kolding. Both of them were to be professors of play – amazing! – and I had been invited to bring some play to the party!
CounterPlay Manifesto
While retaining a fundamental openness, curiosity and the capacity to always learn more about the nature of play, with this manifesto we wish to put a stake in the ground and make our position on play clearly visible.
Interview with Petra Stocker, Pro Juventute
Interview with Petra Stocker, Pro Juventute, about the Pro Juventute Play Festival 2018, which takes place in Biel, Switzerland, on May 25th and 26th.
The Player as Funambulist
While a funambulist and a player knows that any state of equilibrium can only ever be momentary, a proper citizen in 2018 is taught to believe that if only the right systems, models and rules are applied and followed, no balancing is required.
Well Played, Bernie
My dear friend, Bernie DeKoven, is now at rest, but I’m sure he continues merrily down that playful path of his. While I’m saddened by his departure, it makes me smile to think of him and his incredible legacy.
Struggling in a ROI Society
I gave a talk at “Spilbar” at the National Film School of Denmark yesterday titled ”‘I’m just playing'; the radical act of expecting nothing in return” (follow link for my presentation), where I made an attempt to connect some of the thoughts and questions...
Playfully Subverting Tech Fetishism
We’ve gotten so used to being surrounded by technology that we often seem to not even pay attention to its presence. This is not (just) a good thing. Maybe play can remind us what it means to be human?
Pro Juventute Play Festival 2018
CounterPlay is collaborating with the Swiss youth organisation “Pro Juventute” to run a play festival with a particular focus on play in public. It takes place on May 25 and May 26, 2018.