Playground: Making Relationships Work and Grow (Philosophy Series) published by Transnational Press London.
A groundbreaking collaboration manual for fostering authentic connections and embracing the unknown.
Playground brings together philosophy and art through the unique collaboration of Ksenija Kadić and Mirela Kulović. This book documents their year-long, authentic philosophical conversations, providing readers with a powerful example of co-creation and a guide for navigating their own creative journeys.
Delving into the essence of playfulness,
Playground explores the philosophy of “Space to be Different” (STBD) – a concept born from the authors’ shared experiences as “misfits, displaced, nomads”. Through chapters designed for random access and filled with questions for the reader, this book invites you to step outside your comfort zone, embrace spontaneity, and discover the transformative power of relationships. It offers a new perspective on collaboration, showing how vulnerability, curiosity, and a willingness to explore the uncharted can lead to profound self-discovery and lasting connections.
More than just a book,
Playground is an experience, designed to inspire nomadic workers and creators to build nurturing, long-lasting collaborative spaces wherever they are in the world.
Visual Art Director Statement
Mirela Kulović: The visuals selected for Playground reflect our shared fascination with the unknown and a commitment to playfulness—themes we have explored throughout our collaborative work over the past few years. Two questions we often asked ourselves: What makes our practice playful? Can we laugh at ourselves when life becomes messy and chaotic? While I’m naturally drawn to precision and intentionality, my approach to creating visuals for this book was guided by a desire to evoke a sense of childlike curiosity, balanced with quiet sophistication.
Parts of this book may carry emotional weight. I saw the visuals as a way to introduce levity, a lightness that offers space to breathe within the complexity. Rather than illustrating specific topics or motifs from the text, the images serve as meditations on the unknown, on play, collaboration, trauma, and healing. Some of them function like formulas, tracing a transformative process that artistic practice has offered us. They mark the subtle shifts that happen when personal experiences are shared, shaped, and made visible through creative exchange.
In directing the visual process, my intention was for the images to stand on their own, independent of explanation or even the accompanying text. I invited both Ksenija and myself to consider: What kinds of spaces must we create in order to feel a sense of belonging? This question—how we connect with others through shared space—has been a persistent thread in my thinking. Over time, I’ve come to believe that the imperfect spaces we co-create often feel the most welcoming.
My hope is that Playground, through both its texts and visuals, opens up a space that embraces imperfection and invites connection: with yourself, with us, and with one another.