Project 1 Phase 2
Pimboon Wongmesak
Yarinda Bunnag
Play Gifts and Manipulatives
In this phase, I developed a toy based on the key concepts and themes that I pulled out from my previous case study analysis. Milstein Hall was an addition to two existing, pre-historic buildings, and was added to solve the problem of needing more space. By doing so, it created an interactive, collaborative, flexible space, but most importantly, created a connection between the three buildings, and transformed the site into something new.
Thus, the main key concepts I pulled out were transformation, addition, and connection. It came from the notion that the two existing buildings are independent individuals, but add Milstein Hall (also an individual) and you have a transformed, dependent series.
The basis of my toy works the same way. It explores additions, connections, and transformations. There are blocks which come in two sets, and each set can be built into one complete form. However, the pieces can also be mixed and joined in different ways to create a whole, new unique form.
The game helps players learn about connections, balance and structure. One piece is an individual shape, but they can be connected - and the individual shapes are now transformed. As players add on pieces, they can continue to transform what they are constructing, but also explore balance and structure and not let their form collapse. They can also learn about joints and how they can or cannot join pieces together.
There are two different types of joints: knobs and ledges. Make sure you don't get them mixed!
To make the "complete" form, the shapes have been simplified to aid the construction of it. Adjacent shapes have shared surfaces and joint types - use that as a guide!
Now to the main part of the game: hybrids! There are many ways you can connect the pieces together. Add pieces to a central piece, and see how far you can go without letting it fall over. Notice how the different joints work together, and how they can be adapted and matched. The surfaces don't have to be the same or match perfectly as long as the joints work (and it stays balanced!). With the right balance, any transformation is possible.
Another reason why the blocks are shaped this way is that they are hybrids of different shapes: intersections, combinations of squares, triangles, circles, etc., creating hybrid pieces. When the pieces are together, they also create hybrid forms. In addition, OMA has a workflow where they also like to mash different, seemingly "unfit, incoherent" shapes together and create a seamless structure and form, so this toy also explores that aspect.
Closer photos of what the joints and connections look like:
And explorations of different forms/hybrids:
A short video on how it's played:
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