Playground for Leif / designliga

Designliga, a design agency from Munich, Germany, has just created the perfect room for a child. Here, the children can play, hide, built or just relax.

“Playground for Leif” marks a clear end to tradition in children’s room design and offers a new look and a brand new world of experiences for children and family members alike. The room is designed using a unique piece of furniture that meets the practical needs of a children’s room while at the same time provides excitement, inspiration, and a feeling of independence.

More images and architect’s description, after the break.

Munich
By designing this children’s room for their colleague’s, Sasa Stanojcic’s son Leif, designliga has created a new living space for children and broken a cliché that has long become obsolete. Because a children’s room that reflects the adult world on a smaller scale and attempts to trivialize it with a potpourri of plush and kitsch was out of the question even right from the start.

Think before you act
It was only after first closely observing Leif’s behavior and his favorite playtime activities, did an approach that catered to the needs of children and did not fit with the formal traditions of a mediocre adult world evolved. What have parents around the world been able to observe? Children love to climb and jump around. They build forts and like to hide. Children want to experience the world, make their own decisions, and be grownups. They take pride in assuming responsibility, search for comfort, security, and love being in the middle of the action. designliga has succeeded in transforming these needs into an aesthetically sophisticated concept.

Basic design
The recurring modular basic design creates an abundance of storage space that can be sectioned off and even according to different themes. The construction makes it possible to create a number of surprising designs and gives the room a completely new look and feel. Every part of this piece of furniture is flexible and accessible even to children, stable and create an opportunity for children to explore. Each cube conceals something new whether it be a storage box, a lamp, or a wardrobe. Each tile is a removable lid that children over the age of three can use.

Storage space
The boxes serve as storage space organized in practical way so that objects ranging from bulky toys to bedding and books through to bags and arts and crafts supplies all have their own place. The wardrobe is located in a hollow space under the climber and can be accessed by a cube that opens like an ordinary cabinet door.

Exploring spaces
“Playground for Leif” not only provides storage space, most importantly it offers new experiences in exploring spaces. Leif can climb the different levels that reach up to 2 meters (6½ft.) and is able to experience the room at different heights. “From atop the climber, he can look at the tops of adults’ heads for a change or speak with them eye to eye,” explains Sasa Stanojcic.

The tunnel that surrounds the entire structure creates a retreat from adults, functions as a hiding place when playing, can be used as a test of courage of being in the dark on a dare, or simply encourages a little competition among children to see who “is the first to crawl through the tunnel”. A cushioned hollow space at the end of the tunnel creates a feeling of security provided by a comfortable fort.

One of the two tunnel exits opens out under the desk which can be detached from the rest of the furniture.

The built-in bed functions as a play area during the day and thanks to its generous dimensions 0.8m x 2m (2½ft. x 6½ft.) can even be used into adult years. The lids to all the boxes are padded with foam and an extremely durable microfiber cover. This creates a tactile soft contrast with an optical clear line. The area around the bed invites the entire family to relax with the child in its room.

Philosophy
“Playground for Leif” lets children go their own way and pursue their own needs. In doing so, it transcends the linear transformation into adult life with a mini-wardrobe, mini-oven, mini-car, and mini-store. “Playground for Leif” contrasts the light blue-pink gender structure a child learns early on with an aesthetically contemporary expression of what is family.