the images are from a children’s play area designed by uxus design for a mcdonald’s near amsterdam. uxus’ goal was to create an environment where children could learn about food from the farm to the market to the table. it sure beats the ball pits and slides i remember when i was little. click here for more information on uxus design. [thanks, ruben!]
21 Comments
this is so ridiculously cute i can barely stand it! i kinda want to live there!
Omg, this is amazing! From mcdonalds, of all places??
Incredibly cute!
Now, if only McDonald’s food weren’t horribly bad for children and their actual farming practices weren’t horribly bad for the environment…
additional proof that, as my sister’s best friend from amsterdam used to say, “if it ain’t dutch, it ain’t much.”
great design. I wonder if their menu is different too. It would be ironic to spend all that time and money on educating kids about healthy food and then serving up fries and nuggets:)
Why is it that big corporations always have better design and marketing in other countries? I’d love to see that here.
I gotta agree with Kate Z–very cute! very enticing for children, too bad it’s a terrible misrepresentation of all that McDonald’s stands for.
this might be a silly question, but does anyone know if mcdonalds has different farming/production processes in europe? i’m guessing not, but since i’ve never eaten at one i figured i should ask.
correction: ac will rat me out if i don’t admit i got french fries at a mcdonalds in amsterdam on my birthday. whoops.
that’s beautiful!
it has nothing of the standard mcdonald’s ugly design…
well i never thought i’d see anything about good design from mcdonalds on design sponge – this play area is so cool!
What is going on with that shopping cart painting at the bottom? I LOVE it!
this is absolutely amazing! too bad it’s in mc donalds… because that’s just gross.
Aw, I liked the ball pits and slides!
Also, I think as a kid it might make me sad to think about these farm animals becoming my meal…
Wow, I am amazed that is a McDonalds. Love the “McVillage” type in the first shot.
i dont know how i feel about this.. i like it from my point of view, but i think it would have creeped me out as a child.
i was so surprised when we moved to Austria to see McDonald’s Cafe’s full of dark wood stained furniture and flooring, bright white walls and actually edible food. I don’t know about the farming practices (the EU does have some way more environmentally responsible policies than the US and Canada) but it’s safe to say the design is not made up solely of sunshine yellow and Ronald McDonald Red! great post by the way :)
It does look great. But I agree, it in no way represents the truly awful nature of animal “farming” and indeed perpetuates the lie to children that eating animals is completely normal and natural.
Yeah some Macdonalds in the UK have changed their interiors into swanky green and black sofa type places. However I doubt they will ever alter their awful farming practices.
Thanks for posting these amazing images! Really love it! They had already mentioned this Mcvillage project on thecoolhunter.net in a post about a beautiful winery UXUS did, but this is the first time I see the pictures!! It’s really amazing! I’m looking forward to see more of UXUS in the future..
I have to echo the previous sentiments – the design is awesome, but if I was the designer I wouldn’t be comfortable with the fact that I helped McDonald’s to appear like something even remotely “green.” It may be too holier-than-thou, yes, but it’s time for designers to increase their awareness about environmental issues, I say.
Have to say though – whoever McDonalds’ PR firm for Amsterdam is, they’re doing hell of a job.
Europe rules! That’s why I wished I lived there.
“if it ain’t dutch, it ain’t much.”
haha this saying is great!
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