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The friendship game

By Peter Maxwell 12 : 08 : 2016 Serendipity : The Flat Age Society : Play

Paris – A new exhibition at Cité de la Mode et du Design examines the friendship- and community-building power of play.

The installations mix traditional games such as ping pong with cutting-edge technology such as a 3D printer
The exhibition is designed to appeal to people of all ages and foster connections between different generations

Play! at Cité de la Mode et du Design, Paris

Play! comprises a series of interactive installations and games that encourage visitors of all ages to connect with their inner child and other visitors. ‘Playing games has always been a way of meeting and interacting with strangers,’ curator Véronique Thouvenin told Wallpaper.

Highlights include artist Laurent Perbos’ ping pong tables, which come in a variety of unexpected shapes, and digital artist Tim Knapen’s l’Artisan Électronique, which comprises a virtual pottery studio attached to a ceramic 3D printer.

Design collective Fichtre invented a new sport especially for the exhibition. Bantoosh can be played by between two and 40 players. The aim of the game is to get a wooden ball into the other team’s net, but participants must be seated and each member of the team has to touch the ball before scoring, forcing greater collaboration between the players.

The Big Picture

While digital technologies have enabled us to interact with greater numbers of people than ever before, exhibitions such as Play! highlight the value of real-world connections. Read our Stranger Liaisons microtrend to find out more.