Revealing the underpass potential for play and introspection and enhancing the feeling of safety. 

Liminal spaces are transitional and often overlooked spaces that exist as residual areas between established destinations. This project focuses on a specific underpass beneath the M8 motorway in Royston, traversed daily by commuters from residential areas to the city center. However, this passage is associated with feelings of insecurity, neglect, and monotony. The project aims to facilitate a transition from non-place to a ‘third place,’ offering a social environment that is neither work, home, or a place of consumption. Through a co-design process involving the underpass’s users, the intervention introduces three scenographic elements that reveal the space’s potential for play, introspection, and improve the feeling of safety. Passersby are invited to interact with reflective and colorful installations, engaging with the sun’s light to create playful scenes. The use of mirror stainless steel enhances visibility and contributes to improving the sense of safety by reflecting the surrounding environment. This scenography encourages users to interpret light and shadow effects; rotative structures allow to redirect the sun’s light, distorted metal surfaces cast atmospheric reflections, and sliding transparent colored panels blend colored shadows. They define areas and create sensorial ludic cues that transform the perception of the space.