ECOTRAIL IN UGRA NATIONAL PARK

It was important for us not to give a set of separate facts about the forest, but to explain that everything there is interconnected. That’s why we linked the information on displays with the common story about forest as an ecosystem.

To make the trail not only educational, but also entertaining, we decided to add an interactive feature. This is how the idea of a riddle trail came about. On the first display, visitors see the question: "What is a forest?" The answer can be found by searching for the ten clue letters hidden on the displays.

The mysteries of the forest are revealed by the specially created character Stepan Ugroff. Stepan is a young scientist, a fourth-generation forester and a national park ranger. We used the figure of a mentor, an older brother. Stepan knows a lot about the forest and can tell the children about it in a simple and understandable way. Through such a character, we take away the edification and turn the lecture into a fascinating journey.

The Hedgehog is Stepan’s friend, an auxiliary character. He is used for interactivity and helps children find clues. On the billboards with a picture of the Hedgehog, there are hidden letters that finally form the word ECOSYSTEM.

It was important to convey complex scientific information on the displays in an easy form for children. Therefore, we chose a popular-science style for the narrative. We developed each part of information with an expert in biology in order to preserve the correct meanings.

Each display explains what is happening around in the forest. All information is divided into thematic parts with conclusions. Sometimes we lead the reader to make a conclusion himself, so that the knowledge is better stored in the memory. Some content is transformed into diagrams, illustrations, and creative architectural solutions: opening windows, cubes and a book.

The team had a difficult task: to find a visual image that would attract children aged 8−15 and not look childish. In addition, we had to make the billboards' design fit into the landscape and stand out against the greenery at the same time.

The brandbook of Ugra National Park has a monochrome scheme for the displays' design, which would be boring for children. Together with the client, we decided to use additional colors. We chose light blue and light green for the background. This was not a coincidence: the trail is more than 7 kilometers long, and the displays should be visible from afar. Now they, reflecting the light of the sun, shine like lighthouses among grass and trees. Bright and saturated colors: orange, lettuce, and blue, are intended to highlight accents and control the visitors' attention on a display itself.

Wellcamp company did the architectural work.

Starting from the script’s main line that the forest is an ecosystem, the team asked themselves: "What is the main symbol of the forest? What image can be transferred to the three-dimensional space? What would most harmoniously tell the idea of the trail?" The answer was obvious: a tree.

The image of a tree was implemented in more simplified and strict geometric lines, which are not peculiar to natural ones, but are familiar and understandable to people of any age. The chosen form is scaled and transformed throughout the trail. Displays, canopies, observation decks, and floorings were made as small architectural forms and decorated with elements on the forest theme. Thus, the supports of small displays expressed the geometry of a tree trunk, and the closing decorative elements in gazebos and canopies looked like the outlines of a whole group of trees.