SAGE GARDENS
changing outdoor spaces
into an environment full of nature
projects
a guided tour through natural playgrounds in Holland
27th - 30th April 2013, Holland
Playschool Tjarnarsel from Keflavík, Iceland booked a guided trip with SAGE gardens to visit natural playground in playschools and public areas in Holland. Their aim was to get inspired for re-building their own playschool garden this summer and increase their knowledge on out door learning. Our hosts in Holland and fellow organizers were Willy Leufgen & Marianne van Lier from Springzaad.nl. The 18 staff members visited during few days many interesting places in Amsterdam e.g. ´t Woeste Westen, two public playgrounds and a jungle like play installation in Vondelpark, then the trip continued to north of Netherlands to Beverwijk where we visited several re-created play school yards, public play ground Moby Dick and more - all created by De Twee Heren. We met play school staff, directors, public workers and garden designers who informed us about all the various aspects of designing, building and using natural playgrounds..
beach land art project for teachers
22nd May 2013, Seltjarnarnes, Capital Area, Iceland
SAGE organized a land-art workshop for teachers of handcrafts and biology, putting emphasis on outdoor education and experiential learning. 20 teachers came from all over the Europe to join a study visit hosted by Cursus Iceland. The teachers were divided into two groups, which switched afterwards. George´s group was creating sculptures from found materials on the beach, either in smaller groups or alone. Sarka´s group was making a barefoot pathway, also from what was found by the sea. Then the participants tried to follow the path with their bare feet and closed eyes, guided by someone from the group. Afterwards all participants shared their experiences. It was a very inspired and motivated group of teachers, eager to try something new, learn on their 'own skin' and ready to put their hands on. Thanks to all!
imagine nature in the streets
28th April 2013, City Library, Reykjavík, capital area, Iceland
The creative workshop was inviting visitors to transform their visions of nature in the streets into 3D models (building from loose materials in boxes with sand), collages and drawings. Many nice ideas from children of all ages came out!
Workshop was part of two festivals, Art Without Limitations (List Án Landamæra), listanlandamaera.wordpress.com/list-an-landamaera-2013/ and the Children´s Culture festival (Barnamenningarhátíð), barnamenningarhatid.is
three weeks internship in Holland
1st - 17th May 2013, Holland
George from SAGE gardens spent three weeks with an ecological gardening company in the Netherlands, De Twee Heren (The Two Gentlemen). There he worked with owners Jan & Barry on their projects at hand, ranging from re-making a branch tee-pee, doing maintenance work in private ecologically managed gardens, laying a freeform pavement from recycled bricks and more. They also showed him their finished projects, gave back ground information on them which often led to nice and interactive dialogues. A big aspect of De Twee Heren´s approach is the sustainable mangement of green spaces from small private gardens to public green in towns and cities. All in all a very pleasant and practical visit creating new connections, friendships and potential for further cooperation - thanks to the initiation of Willy and Marianne at www.springzaad.nl
natural features on Tjarnarsel´s playground
25th May, 8th June 2013, playschool Tjarnarsel, Keflavík, South-West Iceland
The playschool Tjarnarsel and SAGE gardens were planning together how to change the playschool´s playground since the autumn 2012. The cooperation started after the conference "Challenges And Adventure, Outdoor Learning In Urban Areas", where the playschool´s headmaster got to know about our projects. Shortly after that we started to work with a team of the playschool in gathering ideas for the change. The whole school was very excited, the headmaster, staff from classes and kitchen, parents, municipality office, and last but not least, the children.
Presentations, brainstorms, model making, sketches, discussions... That took us through the winter, into the spring. Then we organised a study trip to Holland for the school staff, where they got even more inspired and motivated to bring more nature into their playground lot. Groups of parents, staff and children worked with us on the playground two weekends during the summer. As a result the playground got new flower pots with a variety of edible and decorative plants, more hills and grass, stones, logs for balancing, more trees and bushes, a water trail and a wooden shelter for the children´s gatherings. Everybody´s input, special knowledge and experience were beneficial. There are still stings on the 'To Do List', to be finished next summer, we are already looking forward. This was an excellent project and a good example of motivated and well prepared staff and parents, taking an active part in the whole process. Good luck in the next steps.
changing open field into leisure time area
1st June 2013, summer house area in Skorradalur, West Iceland
Several summer house owners in the valley met together to bring new features into the open fields next to the lake in Skorradalur and invited SAGE to realize it. The visitors usually use this space for camping, sport activities and events, children for games and play. An active group of locals planted a lot of new vegetation in the area through the last years. The current plan is to add more variety of installations to the playground, plant more vegetation and add some landscape. The first day we built together a shelter for grilling, decorated the main gate and fences, set up the beginning for a balancing trail and planted more trees. Thanks to the enthusiastic locals, a lot was done within a good days work. We look forward to see how this area will keep on growing changing under their hands.
balancing trail in Selskógur
26th May 2013, Selskógur forest in Grindavík, South-West Iceland
SAGE gardens together with the forestation office in Grindavik started on changing the open leisure area in Selskógur. A group of interested local inhabitants decided to start with building a balancing trail. Thanks to the motivated participants the 'Mikado' installation and posts with ropes for climbing were put down during one day. More plans are still waiting on the drawing board. Selskógur is a beautiful forest area close to Grindavík, used by local schools for outdoor learning projects. In the summer it is a popular place for family or school trips and hiking.
outdoor learning area for schools, playshools and scauts
June, July 2013, scout center Vífill in Garðabær, capital area, Iceland
In Autumn 2012 SAGE were offered to make a proposition for changing flat space next to the scout centre in Garðabær into outdoor learning area. After several meetings, presentations and discussions with town planing office, scaut leaders, teachers from playschools and schools in the neighbourhood, the joined vision was clear and the realization could started. During two summer months SAGE together with the town planing and the vinuhópur from the community add more landscape and vegetation to the area. Spot for storytelling, fireplace area, sandpit, river stream and mudpit, balancing trail, sundeck, visible and hidden pathways, spots for contemplation, studying or play were created. The biggest difference was made by moving the soil and forming variety of hills and valleys, adding stones and logs for sitting or ballancing on. Thanks to the organisers for a good cooperation from the planning phaze till the lasts days!
pathway to nature from Ingólfstorg
25th April 2013, Ingólfstorg, Reykjavík, capital area, Iceland
During the celebrations of First Day Of Summer in Iceland SAGE took a part in the festival Art Without Limitations, istanlandamaera.wordpress.com/list-an-landamaera-2013, and the Children´s Culture festival, barnamenningarhatid.is. The result was a temporary pathway built from natural materials on the square downtown inviting visitors to explore it and experience bit of nature in the middle of the city.
Special thanks to Márgret (L.Á.L.), Gústaf (Skógræktarfélag Reykjavík), Jakob (HÍ), Ívar (LHÍ), Petra and Una&Anek family!
playhouse and sun terrace
playhouse and sun terrace
second stage of Krilakot
July-October 2012, playschool Krílakot, Dalvík, North Iceland
The second and final part of rebuilding the playground in Krílakot took place during the summer. A new playhouse with a sundeck and wind shelter was created on the north side of the playground. The local teenage group of summer workers made a log stairs in the hill leading to the sundeck. An old potato garden was turned into an open air play home/garden with turf walls. A salvaged slide and a D.I.Y. climbing ramp were put into a brand new hill. A new castle was build from sustainable larch wood offering climbing, balancing and hiding & seeking in and around. A river bed from local stones was put into a hill, leading to a sandpit for mud play, adding the element water to the area. A lighthouse tower was added to the pier from last summer and a new climbing trail with a changeable rope set up was build in the south part of the playground.
rebuilding of a playground in two weekends
July, September 2012, playschool Barnaból, Þörshofn, North-East Iceland
Together with the parents from Barnaból and the local community we changed the local playground by planting, landscaping and adding to it natural and recycled materials. Some parents were painting the old boat, others planting new vegetation, building a pier, wind shelters or a mikado installation. During the second weekend a new fireplace/story telling circle was build as well as new ramp and slide positioned onto the hill. Old sandpits were changed, into more organic shapes. About 20 parents joined the project with their children as well as the staff from the playschool.
organizers and lecturers
find your own path-way
the exhibition Experience Is Knowledge in Akureyri
October 2011, center for culture events Ketilhús, Akureyri, North Iceland
In October the exhibition was invited to a cultural center in Akureyri as a part of a program for local schools called museum education. The exhibition was adjusted to the location but the installations and the contents were the same as in Hjalteyri, see bellow. Children could follow experiential pathway, build a playhouse from recycled boxes and other materials, make models of a dream playground and experience their sense of touch, smell, hearing and sight in a new way.. During the time the exhibition was visited by children form play and elementary schools with their teachers and also open for the general public.
conference about outdoor learning in urban areas
May, June 2012, Reykjavík/Kopavogur, capital area, Iceland
SAGE, together with Kristín Dýrfjord (The University of Akureyri), Jakob F. Þorsteinsson (The University of Iceland) and Norbert Schaffer (STADT-UND-NATUR) organised an international conference "Challenges And Adventure, Outdoor Learning In Urban Areas". Professionals in different fields (landscape architects, teachers, professors, project leaders, etc) had lectures and workshops focused on advantages of outdoor play and natural surroundings within cities. The conference had two days of lectures and one day of a hands-on workshop where a Mikado installation was built in the garden of Waldorf school in Lækjarbotnum, Kopavogur. The lecturers came from Iceland, Germany, Holland and Czech Republic. You can see the presentations and listen to the speeches online:
http://dev2.vefsetur.hi.is/utinam_og_natturuleg_leiksvaedi_2
the exhibition Experience Is Knowledge in Hjalteyri
September 2011, old herring factory Verksmiðjan, Hjalteyri, North Iceland
Sage together with Birgit Ehrhardt from German landscape company STADT-UND-NATUR organised an exhibition promoting outdoor learning projects and natural playground building. The visitors could try to pass an experiential trail from varied materials or make a 3D model of their dream play area. Books and documents connected to natural playground building were displayed for visitors to look into or they could watch looped presentations from our last two projects in Iceland and a movie about STADT-UND-NATUR´s work methods and ideology. The visitors could also experience their senses while focusing on one at the time and bake bread on an open fire. During the three weekends the exhibition was visited and enjoyed by people of different ages. More info at: http://verksmidjan.blogspot.com/
little edible garden
little play homes
little edible garden
first stage of changing a playschool garden
July-August 2011, playschool Krílakot, Dalvík, North Iceland
Thanks to the cooperation between the playschool, parents, local companies and youth, the playground in Krílakot got a new face during the summer:
A new sand pit for toddlers and a fence dividing the area between younger and older children was build from Icelandic larch wood logs. New trees, strawberries, peppermint plants, rhubarb, berry bushes and wild flowers donated from local inhabitants were planted. The damaged old castle was taken down and its usable parts were turned into other constructions. A salvaged slide and a D.I.Y. climbing ramp were put into a newly created hill and a pier was added to the old boat. New hills and valleys were shaped from soil within the playground and covered with grass. Simple wooden wind shelters popped up every here and there, to offer a chance to hide from stormy wind, when it hits.
a temporary playground for outdoor education
May - July 2011, playschool Iðavellir, Akureyri, North Iceland
For 2 months we joined the team from the playschool Iðavellir as guest teachers in an outdoor education project of exploring nature with children and offering creative workshops.. Part of the project was to make a local public playground more inviting and offering varied possibilities for daily outdoor programs. During these 8 weeks the preschool children were spontaneously and curiously exploring the nature around:
observing the bark of a tree through a looking glass, collecting dandelions and rain-worms in jars, building shelters from branches, balancing on tree trunks, creating their own pathways.. They changed the set up of the garden several times every day, using loose trunks, logs, branches and different salvaged materials (fabric, pipes, cans, ... ). Simple materials and the fresh air made each day exciting and worth exploring...