2016 Playable City Award goes to Hirsch and Mann
The winner of the 2016 international Playable City Award was London based design and technology consultancy Hirsch & Mann, who pitched to transform everyday pedestrian crossings into playful multi-sensory experiences.
In September 2016, Watershed unveiled the shortlist of 8 projects out of 81 applications from 34 countries for the fourth international Playable City Award, inviting artists, designers, architects, technologists and creative practitioners from all over the world to propose new and distinctive ideas to respond to the theme Journeys.
Hirsch & Mann’s Stop Smile Stroll is a playful intervention at pedestrian crossings that brings strangers together for a serendipitous shared moment – interrupting the tedium of our everyday mundane ‘stop and walk’ routine. The judges were particularly excited about their emphasis on co-creating pedestrian crossing experiences with local communities – which may range from a 30 second party to a moment of quiet reflection, as well as incorporating city data.
As winners of the 2016 Award they received £30,000 and worked with the Watershed team to develop and test their ideas in Bristol, before touring to other Playable City cities globally.
Stop Smile stroll will be live in Bristol on 17 and 18 March as part of the 5G Layered Realities Festival.
The 2016 Playable City Award is produced by Watershed and supported by: