TOFU architects: osaka board game park

TOFU architects: osaka board game park all images © yohei sasakura

a temporary installation in osaka, japan, the ‘osaka board game park’ was the result of a collaboration between japanese architects TOFU, yuji tamai and the kansai university urban design lab, focusing on the use of public spaces. although osaka’s transportation is historically canal-based, the waterfront is currently going through revitalization. as part of the initiative, the art installation was in the osaka 2011 festival located at the east end of nakanoshima park.

focused on checkers, the project consisted of various scales of the board game integrated into the surrounding greenery. to keep the project low cost, materials such as paper, cardboard, cloth, vinyl sheet flooring, wood tile, stone and stainless steel were used. the sculptural forms of the checker board simultaneously functioned as a small play ground as the visitors climbed and sat on the structures. the urban re-imagining of the landscape was a demonstration of economically sustainable ways to successfully enrich public spaces.

(left) game parts integrated into the surrounding greenery (right) three dimensional checker boards image © yohei sasakura

visitors interacting with the game pieces

the installation was part of a project focused on revitalizing the waterfront area image © yohei sasakura

different scales of chess allows for reinterpretation of use image © yohei sasakura

view of piece from above image © yohei sasakura

the land was once used as a dock for ships image © yohei sasakura