Erin Stromgren

Bug-in-the-rug appears and functions as any rug, but upon closer examination children discover other uses. Slight alterations made to the construction of this common home textile provide the possibility to experience an element of the everyday home milieu in an entirely new way. The top, pleated rows of hobby felt sewn to light weight white nylon, is intended to imitate the look of an ordinary shag rug and be safe for children to crawl inside. This rug, which measures 140 cm x 200 cm, was a continuation of the initial concept conceived back in Fall 2010.

Ruinen can be found in the Ronja the Robber’s Daughter environment at Astrid Lindgren’s World located in Vimmerby, Sweden. Working closely with the storyline of Astrid Lindgren’s book of the same name, I collaborated with the park’s design team in the development of this labyrinth for play. Nestled in in Ronja’s forest, visitors can explore the abandoned structure and discover artifacts left behind, perhaps even by Ronja. The ruin was built onsite by the Swedish construction company PEAB.

Playprints is a concept for activity based playground surfaces – developed from a child’s perspective. Simple geometric patterns, applied to the modular system of fall-safe rubber tiles in the production process, both break down the adult scale of the surface and enhance opportunity for play. As shown here, patterns can be used to support activities and games children know, share, and partake, either individually, in groups, or with adults, on and around the playground. This conceptual work was developed for the course “Mobility and Play” in conjunction with Kompan and Trädgårdsföreningen in Gothenburg.

This bug-in-the-rug set was developed in Fall 2010 for the interactive exhibition PLAY at Röhsska Museum

Initial bug-in-the-rug prototypes

Wine stand for bag-wine developed during an one week introduction to the wood workshop at HDK.

Bertil was sewn as the prototype for an interactive toy, completed together with Annika Stevens at HDK in Fall 2010. Inspired by the sense of comfort a "security blanket" provides, Bertil is designed to physically reinforce this psychological connection with a "hug." Bertil also provides the user with the opportunity to role play or use as a site for play.

Fort-in-a-box is a prototype of a child’s fort building kit developed during the workshop "Play Structure" at the University of Minnesota. Users hang, zip, bind, and stick the colorful fabric panels and connectors together. The various combinations of pieces provides the child with ample opportunity to build and create his/her own space while developing certain mechanical skills.