2023 | Trust in Play, Elesfina, Greece.

Pop-up summer school for creating urban games for the European Capital of Culture 2023.

Project supported by European Capital of Culture (ECoC) & Liminal, a non-profit organisation dedicated to advancing equal participation in culture.

As part of the European School of Urban Game Design, we participated in a pop-up summer school to explore and develop new ways of playing in public spaces. We provided mentorship and development support to over 30 emerging creatives worldwide to design and present a dozen urban games in a street event as part of the cultural program 2023 Eleusis (Elefsina), the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) in Greece.

Photos by Aris Kamarotos.

Through mentorship, participants created a dozen folk games that explored different aspects of the city, its culture, and its ancient history. This program brought together a diverse group to create real-world explorations of urban play while engaging with the local community. We pushed boundaries and embraced the spirit of play, even amidst heatwaves, wildfires, and unexpected plan changes.

The Elefsina (Eleusis) Cycles 2023 is a project that brings together playful creators and practitioners to explore myths and nocturnal landscapes in Elefsina, Greece. The project consists of 3 Cycles: Researching, Meeting, and Playing with the Mystery. For the 3rd Cycle, we brought together 30 designers, creatives, performers, storytellers, and educators from all over the world to Elefsina, Greece.