Dangle high up in the sky or from the side of a bridge in swings that have been installed in the most unexpected locations, or enjoy the modern and magical designs of swings that are outside the ordinary. These 15 unusual swing designs range from art installations to awesome products you can purchase for your own home.
Sky-High Billboard Swing by Architect Didier Faustino
(images via: visual therapy)
Who (other than those afraid of heights) would turn down the chance to see the skyline from a billboard-height swing? French-Portuguese architect Didier Faustino converted an advertising billboard into an interactive project for the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennial of Urbanism and Architecture.
Entitled ‘Double Happiness’, the work “responds to the society of materialism where individual desires seem to be prevailing over all. This nomad piece of urban furniture allows the reactivation of different public spaces and enables inhabitants to reappropriate fragments of their city.”
Sculptural Swings by Fletcher and Myburgh
(images via: myburghdesigns)
Garden swings don’t get much more magical than this. Artists Fletcher and Myburgh have designed a collection of gorgeous swings made of copper; some have an ornate Art Nouveau look to them while others are strikingly modern. Depending on complexity and weight, the swings run between £2,000 and £19,000.
Urban Swing Installation Project by Jeff Waldman
(images via: notcot)
Why shouldn’t we enjoy the spaces under piers, beside bridges and beneath industrial remains? Jeff Waldman’s whimsical swing installations reclaim these spaces for the sake of fun, placing swings in unexpected locations. The swings have graced Los Angeles, San Francisco, the Marshall Islands and Panama.
Monument Swing by Kamila Szejnochon, Poland
(images via: kamilaszejnoch)
The hand of a statue commemorating the Berling Army Soldiers in Warsaw was just begging for an installation like this one. Artist Kamila Szejnochon wanted to “pursue a dialog with memorials that served as community propaganda… to suggest a change in the function of the monuments is an attempt to build a bridge between the present and the past, to add a contemporary layer distinct from their original style and function.”
Swings on a Train
(images via: BART Swings 2009 Flickr)
Riding the train got a lot more fun when swings were surreptitiously installed on San Francisco’s BART public transit system. Tied to the handrails, the swings invited riders to play and laugh, and photos were taken to document the event.
Swing Necklace by Johanna Richter
(images via: sleek identity)
Just as you adorn your own body with jewelry, you can do the same for your home – but this extra-extra-large necklace serves another purpose, too. Johanna Richter’s Swing Necklace is a handmade swing made of either balls of gray felt or oiled beechwood, and can be hung in doorways or other locations as both decor and entertainment.
Floating Swing Sofa by Philippe Nigro
(images via: freshome)
Perhaps more of an art piece than a practical piece of furniture, this floating sofa can be suspended from a steel tube from with cables for a spider-web-like effect. It’s hard to say whether the couch actually swings or just hangs from the frame like a hammock; either way, it’s… interesting.
Bus Stop Swing
(images via: apartment therapy)
Artist Bruno Taylor installed a swing at a bus stop for an industrial design class, taking a video of the various reactions received by bus riders and passersby. “71% of adults used to play on the streets when they were young. 21% of children do so now. Are we designing children and play out of the public realm?”
“This project is a study into different ways of bringing play back into public space. It focuses on ways of incorporating incidental play in the public realm by not so much as having separate play equipment that dictates the users but by using existing furniture and architectural elements that indicate playful behaviour for all. It asks us to question the current framework for public space and whether it is sufficient while also giving permission for young people to play in public. Play as you go…”
Carefree Dining Swing Set
(images via: duffy)
Swinging while eating: a good idea, or not? Perhaps it wouldn’t make for ideal digestion, and it could result in quite a mess, but this dining set is definitely an eye-catcher. Designed by Duffy, the dining swing set features a frame that hovers over the table, serving as a support for eight dangling chairs in shades of black, red or white.
VisionDivision
(images via: inhabitat)
Design firm Visiondivision created an unusual concession stand and swing set made from a single giant tree for the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s 100 Acres Park. Called Chopstick, the project turns a whole tree on its side, stripping it of its bark and using it as a frame for a concession kiosk, children’s swings and a bench swing for adults.
Tempting Swinging Beds
(images via: lebeanock, bernstein architecture)</>
Be warned – if you put a swinging bed in your house, you might just never get out of it. ‘Le Beanock’ is half hammock, half bean bag, and probably one of the most comfortable things you’d ever have the pleasure of experiencing. Bernstein Architecture, meanwhile, offers a whole range of suspended furniture, including beds hanging from cables.
