Marking World Play Day, June 11, the Play Pavilion, designed by British architect Peter Cook in collaboration with the LEGO Group, has just opened. The Pavilion is located next to Serpentine South in Kensington Gardens, London. Developed with Pablo Wheldon and Cong Ding, the Pavilion is a collaboration between Serpentine, the LEGO Group, The Royal Parks, and CONSUL. The project builds on Serpentine's broader efforts to connect architecture, design, and public engagement through temporary installations in the park.
The structure invites visitors of all ages to explore play as a spatial and creative experience. It incorporates LEGO bricks into the design and creates an immersive environment shaped by color, form, and movement. Openings in the walls, some forming slides, tunnels, or stage-like spaces, encourage physical interaction and multiple points of entry. From the outside, perforated and scooped surfaces reveal glimpses of the interior, offering a sense of openness while preserving elements of discovery.
Play transcends survival, achievement, and common sense. It encourages, or at least permits us, to explore and idly delight in a territory between the wayward and speculative towards unashamed amusement. - Peter Cook
Designed as a place for both informal activity and live programming, the Pavilion will host a series of events throughout the summer. It continues Serpentine's recent focus on engaging younger audiences and creating inclusive spaces. In 2022, the institution partnered with the London Lions Basketball Club, artist Alvaro Barrington, and local organizations to create a public basketball court in Bethnal Green, combining recreation with artistic intervention in a community setting.
The Serpentine Gallery is also known for hosting the Serpentine Pavilion, a renowned annual commission that invites a different architect to design a temporary structure each year. This year "A Capsule in Time," designed by Bangladeshi architect and educator Marina Tabassum and her firm, Marina Tabassum Architects, has just opened. Marking the 25th year since the Serpentine's first commission of Zaha Hadid's inaugural structure in Hyde Park in 2000, the design takes inspiration from the ephemeral, adaptive architecture of the Bengal Delta, featuring a semi-transparent structure that aims to foster a sense of community and collective experience. The pavilion will be open to the public in London's Kensington Gardens from June 6th to October 26th, 2025.
Editor's Note: This article was originally published on April 10, 2025, and updated on June 11, 2025, on the official opening day of the pavilion.
