This Giant Ball Pit for Everyone Is Perfect for Making Grownups Act Like Kids

Bubbles? A giant room of foam? No, those are 1.1 million white plastic balls. “The Beach” is a giant ball pit—for adults—open for frolicking at Sydney Festival in Australia, an annual arts and culture event, and it’s become quite an attraction for grownups who are ready to get back to their more childish roots. (And with its minimalist all-white design, it’s also a magnet for photography.) Previously open in Washington, D.C. and in Tampa, Florida, The Beach is a roving attraction that gets visitors up close and personal with a very tactile experience of art.

“What we’re interested in is looking at existing architecture… and reimagining them to create new and unexpected moments,” said Alex Mustonen, one of the founders of Snarkitecture, the New-York-based arts and architecture “experimental practice” that’s behind The Beach.

“Everything that we create is done with the intention of it functioning for a five year old and an 85-year-old,” Snarkitecture founder Daniel Arsham explained in a video detailing the creation process. That seems to be working out: based on social media posts from the installation, people of all ages are having no problem jumping right in.

And in case you’re worried about the environmental impact of that much plastic—or the germs that must be lurking in the depths of the pit—have no fear: The Beach uses materials that are both recyclable and antimicrobial, according to Snarkitecture.

See everyone taking a dip below.