Go ahead, color on the walls.

San Antonio Botanical Gardens will feature a children’s playhouse designed by Laura Kaarlsen, class of 1990. The playhouse was designed to encourage children to express creativity by allowing them to draw and color on the walls of the playhouse.

“I played around with several different concepts, but I settled on the artist’s playhouse for different reasons,” Kaarlsen said. “I teach elementary art, so it is close to my heart.  Since art can be a messy process, it seemed like a good idea to have an outdoor studio where kids could be creative without anyone getting upset about messes.  The playhouse was originally based on some of Picasso’s pieces, but it evolved beyond that.”

The title of the playhouse is En Plein Air, which is a French term impressionists used for painting outdoors. Other artists and materials inspired the design.

“One of the things I enjoyed most about this playhouse was using so many different materials,” Kaarlsen said. “The sidewalls have panels made from wire mesh for weaving and canvas for painting.  The front and back walls are painted in large murals inspired by different artists. There is a window that has several objects held in place with wire — things like sea glass, shells, rocks, sticks and beads.  Half of the roof is made from cedar fence boards, and the other half has the transparent material.”

Tubes of glass were placed inside the channels of the transparent material allowing more colors to filter into the space.

Kaarlsen said she wanted to create an outdoor studio where kids could experience light, color and the environment and let their imaginations run free.

“There are a variety of wall constructions specifically for drawing, weaving and painting; a workbench for assembling or sculpting; outdoor spaces for star-gazing and cloud-watching;  a window filled with found objects;  transparent roofing for varieties of light and color. All of these things surround the child with endless possibilities for inspiration.”

The design for the playhouse was one of eight chosen to be showcased in the garden.

“Our firm, Shawn Kaarlsen and Associates, Inc., assisted my wife by providing the drawings for the design competition review and the manpower for the construction of the playhouse after she was selected as one of the winning designers,” said Shawn Kaarlsen, environmental design engineer and Kaarlsen’s husband.

The En Plein Air playhouse is the perfect welcome for our guests for the playhouses and forts exhibit,” said Bob Brackman, director of the San Antonio Botanical Garden. “The artistic design and whimsical flair makes this a fun and engaging experience for kids of all ages.”