De Hut

Inspired by Maakland -the coolest playground around: a wooden metropolis build by kids- Otis (10) became obsessed with building his own cabin. He learned here to build with pallets; the systematic uniformity lends itself for instant structures of prefabricated walls and floors: a kind of inhabitable Lego: brilliant!

Otis found a promising building site near his home: the public green flanking a parking lot: a very rare micro forest that serves a buffer zone: dense, seemingly impenetrable.

Otis and his friends scavenged the streets for building material, luckily pallets are ubiquitous. And they come in a baffling amount of dimensions and compositions… standardization run haywire.

What we were not prepared for is the Territorial Battles that emerged. Neighborhood kids also discovered the hidden lair and claimed the premises. Nerf gun attacks, booby traps, nail mats: war… But after forming strategic alliances, there is now a peace agreement, other kids bring hammers, nails and equipment too: now work continues collectively

If we aspire to make the city livable for kids it becomes clear that this type of space is vital: how can we bring about more undefined, unclaimed, unused, uncontrolled pocket parks?