Can open-ended play be a means for collectively exploring the adjacent possible in a design space? Playing with the Sun is a project to develop constructionist play materials that enable learning and creativity with alternative energy sources. As the design of these play materials matures, we will use them to invite children and adults to “play towards” emergent design ideas, document and curate their results, and then offer these insights as a starting point for future participants. The goal is to develop new strategies for supporting collective creativity and the exploration of the adjacent possible in the library.  This research is still in its early stages as a project of Dokk1 Library in Aarhus, Denmark, and the Experimenting, Experiencing, Reflecting research project at the Interacting Minds Centre at Aarhus University. I will share documentation of past experiments as well as future aspirations, and give physical attendees an opportunity to play with the prototype play materials themselves.

About the speaker: Amos Blanton is an educator specializing in the design of open-ended creative learning experiences and environments, and is currently researching collective creativity as a PhD Student at the Interacting Minds Centre at Aarhus University in partnership with Aarhus Public Libraries. He ran the Scratch online community at MIT Media Lab, designed learning through play spaces and activities with the Exploratorium, the Reggio Children Foundation, and LEGO, and helped land the FujiFilm Blimp.