I started PlayLab thanks to a lightning bolt of insight: play and playfulness are the absolute core of all creativity.

After many years working in creative industries like film, advertising and animation, I realised that I’d slightly lost my own ‘play mojo’, and I needed to get it back if I wanted original, intuitive ideas brewing in my head again. Then I considered all the people who don’t have any of the creative play opportunities I’ve always taken for granted, and I knew I could do something about that too.

Initially PlayLab projects were about designing live social games, and creativity-inducing equipment, for places like museums and arts centres. Then I took time out to research much further into the science, philosophy and history of imagination and creativity, which led to my book ‘Power of Play: how play and its games shape life’. Since that’s been read by creatives in many fields, educators, and even a few business leaders, the focus has shifted to talks and workshops built around the specific needs of a whole range of groups and organisations.

Whatever the circumstances, understanding what play really means to human imagination and collaboration, and bringing that energy back into the mix, always has positive results.

— Paul Pethick