Amsterdam-based studio Imagination of Things, co-founded by Vitor Freire and Monique Grimord, has launched "Unruly Play," an interactive digital archive featuring 169 artworks, designs, games, and participatory projects. The repository includes notable works such as Rael San Fratello's "Teeter-Totter Wall" and the Wind Phone project, alongside a 12-foot puppet that travels the world. The archive is searchable by theme or through a shuffle feature, aiming to showcase projects that invite surprise, camaraderie, and unexpected encounters with imagination and joy.
This project matters because it formalizes a multi-decade collection of playful, participatory public art and design, offering a rare resource for artists, designers, and researchers seeking inspiration from cross-disciplinary references. By creating unusual dialogues between works that rarely interact—like a seesaw through a border wall or a phone booth connected to the dead—"Unruly Play" supports new creative practices and challenges fixed norms, emphasizing the role of play in fostering connection and social change.