In a follow-up to the very successful monograph Design for Kids (Images Publishing, 2007), here Sharon Exley and Peter Exley go about expanding on the key philosophies behind their unique practice. Namely, that play is an invitation to Architecture Is Fun. Through architecture, play can be manifest, challenged, and celebrated. Finding out who will play (and live, work, and learn) in our buildings is an intriguing challenge. The firm likes to discover the architectural catalysts that will give character to a building. Often this involves the universal language of Play. Play fits all bodies. Play is accessible. Play inspires innovation. Play puts us in the present. Play engages us. Play is memorable. Play connects us to others and to the world. This beautifully illustrated book offers a glimpse into the firm’s interdisciplinary and participatory processes and how it believes that architecture and play are transformative.
AUTHORS: Founded by Sharon Exley and Peter Exley, Architecture Is Fun is a collaborative practice that explores the nexus of architecture, education, community, and experience. Spreading its influence as educative design strategists, it’s a studio that designs, builds, and consults with its neighbours and with major organisations in a myriad of fields, on a wide range of issues. Sharon Exley and Peter Exley are committed to building the accessible places of learning, living, working, play, and fun that they believe are indispensable for human growth and development. Peter Exley is the 97th President of the American Institute of Architects, a thought leader, professor, and mentor. He believes that architecture is one of the gateways to a more empathetic and equitable future. Sharon Exley is a leading educative designer with a singular aesthetic desire; she wants you to discover beauty and play in architecture. Sharon is a culture builder, author, and developer of Architecture Is Fun’s philosophy of participatory design. She embraces the intersection of design and pedagogy, visual arts, and arts as visual feasts. SELLING POINTS: . Grouped into finished works by typology and thematic idea, this monograph is packed with rich illustrations, plans, full-colour, photography, and incisive commentary on storytelling through design, toolkits for wayfinding, embedding research for better experience outcomes, with strategies and tactics behind each project’s development to help attract and engage people to play, learn, explore, and experience these places . Projects featured include the Mid-Michigan Children’s Museum, Young at Art Museum, Lincoln Park Zoo: Pritzker Family Zoo, The Latin School of Chicago Interactive Science Forum, and the DuPage Children’s Museum, among many others
