Photographer Compares Playgrounds in Different Countries

Despite the differences in environment children select similar games.

In April, publishing house Aperture will release the book Playground by Kenyan photographer James Mollison. The book features children playing in their school playgrounds in England, Butan, India, Nepal, Kenya, the US and other countries. Some of the playgrounds are made with wood, some with cement, some of them look luxurious, some are in a state of destruction. In some countries there is no playgrounds for children and they have to play in any empty space available.

“Although the schools I photographed were very diverse, I was struck by the similarities between children’s behavior and the games they played,” Mollison writes.


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The series continues Mollison’s project Where Children Sleep which features children’s bedrooms in different countries of the world.

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