Playbox by S+PS Architects: A Modular Play Set Haven for Children’s Play
Playbox, A modular play set designed by S+PS Architects in Mumbai, redefines the concept of a playful space for children. This 1,60-square-foot floating cube, nestled within a vaulted ceiling, showcases the firm’s commitment to creating innovative, flexible environments through modular design and prefabrication.
Playbox is more than a playroom; it offers a dynamic space where children can interact with their surroundings, adjust natural light and ventilation, and take ownership of their environment. Using lightweight materials like rubberwood and polycarbonate shutters, S+PS Architects designed Playbox to be easily assembled, disassembled, and reassembled—ensuring both adaptability and sustainability for the family as their needs evolve.
Photography by PHXINDIA Published with bowerbird
How does S+PS Architects’ design philosophy influence the approach to innovative spaces like Playbox, particularly for creating playful environments for children?
S+PS Architects’ design philosophy emphasizes creating playful and flexible environments, particularly for children, by integrating innovative, lightweight, and modular construction techniques. With Playbox, their approach allowed for an interactive space, adaptable to the child’s needs and encouraging their inherent sense of curiosity. By giving the child control over privacy, light, and ventilation through pivoting polycarbonate shutters, they fostered a joyful, playful, user-centered environment that is dynamic and engaging.
What challenges did you face when designing a floating cube within the existing vaulted structure, and how did you ensure the Playbox integrated seamlessly into the home’s architecture?
The main challenge was designing a floating cube within the existing vaulted ceiling without compromising the openness and volume of the space. By capitalizing on the ceiling height, we created a floating structure perched over a wall, which seamlessly integrated into the home’s architecture without disrupting the flow or feel of the room. The lightweight, prefabricated materials ensured the Playbox didn’t burden the structure, maintaining harmony within the existing vaulted space.
Could you elaborate on the choice of lightweight materials, such as rubber wood and polycarbonate sheets, and how they contributed to the modular play set?
Lightweight materials were chosen for their ease of prefabrication and assembly. Rubberwood panels provide structural stability, while the multi-wall polycarbonate shutters are lightweight and add a translucent quality that allowed natural light to flow into the space. These materials were easy for a single execution agency – like the carpenters in this case to handle – allowing for a completely dry construction, and ensuring that the Playbox could be built quickly and dismantled for reuse.
How did the modular play set, dry construction of Playbox allow for flexibility, especially in terms of dismantling and reusing the materials when the family moved to a new home?
The modular play set, dry construction enabled Playbox to be easily dismantled and reassembled when the family moved. As the materials were lightweight and prefabricated, they were reused in a new design without waste, underscoring the adaptability of the structure. This construction method gave the family the flexibility to transport the Playbox to a new location, preserving its functionality while adapting it to a different space. Interestingly, the new designer used a similar-looking design in the new home to evoke the memories of the design for the child.
In what ways did the existing site context, with its 1950s vaulted ceiling and clerestory windows, inspire the spatial design and material selection for the modular play set?
The thin double vaulted concrete shell structure designed by the girl’s grandfather in the 1950s along with the clerestory windows they created, directly inspired the design of Playbox, as they provided the additional height and natural light needed to create a floating structure. The vaulted ceiling allowed for a playful spatial intervention above the living room, while the clerestory windows informed the choice of translucent polycarbonate shutters, which complemented the existing light-filled environment while maintaining privacy and openness. Most importantly, it used the cubic feet volume of the space, against the square feet area of the house, magically creating space out of thin air!
How did you balance the need for privacy, natural light, and ventilation in a small, playful space, particularly with the use of pivoting polycarbonate shutters?
The balance of privacy, natural light, and ventilation was achieved through the use of pivoting polycarbonate shutters. These shutters allowed the child to control the amount of light and air entering the Playbox, creating a customizable environment. When fully shut, the shutters provided privacy with an opalescent glow, while when opened, they allowed for ventilation and light, creating a playful and adaptable space.
Sustainability played a key role in this project. How did the use of fully recyclable materials and the dry construction method minimize environmental impact?
Sustainability was integral to Playbox’s design, with use of fully recyclable and environmentally sustainable materials like fast-growing use of timber like rubber wood and polycarbonate sheets reducing waste. The dry construction method minimized environmental impact by eliminating the need for heavy civil work, making the structure easy to assemble, dismantle, and reuse. It also used less energy and time to construct as it did not need very specialised machinery and equipment. This approach not only conserved resources but also ensured the materials could be repurposed when the family relocated.
Looking ahead, how do you envision the role of prefabrication evolving in residential architecture, particularly for flexible and adaptable spaces like Playbox?
Prefabrication is likely to play an increasingly significant role in residential architecture, particularly in creating flexible and adaptable spaces like the Playbox. It allows for quicker, more sustainable construction methods that are easily customizable, transportable, and reconfigurable. Prefabrication offers a versatile solution for evolving family needs and changes over their life as families change and grow, enabling structures to be dismantled, relocated, or adapted as required, while minimizing environmental impact.
