Reinventing simple ideas and understanding context are imperative to the success of creating interactive installations, according to Montreal design studio Daily Tous Les Jours.

Headed by creative directors Mouna Andraos and Melissa Mongiat, the studio has put together installations across the world that inspire people to reinvent a little bit of their everyday lives.

“We want to continue to explore interaction between people and their surroundings, looking at what experiences bring people together and transform the way we live,” says co-founder Andraos.

The studio’s 21 Swings installation in Montreal features swings that generate music notes when people swing on them. Each of the swings represents a different instrument and when users swing in sequence, a new melody is created. The idea is to encourage co-operation between people in order to progress to the next tune. The temporary installation was reinstalled by popular demand and the pair are now looking at taking the swings to other cities too.

“Long term we're always fascinated by the ‘future of’ things, whether they are public places, technologies, schools, hospitals, restaurants, libraries... We hope we can explore a large variety of scenarios and locations in which we can engage the public.”

In 2011, the studio brought an installation to London’s Victoria & Albert Museum to explore people’s interaction with tea, while in Paris their Kit Operette installation encouraged the public to use props to create their own opera. Props included a ping-pong table, a pair of suspended swings, a dancefloor and a whole cohort of other interactive accessories.

Mouna Andraos, one half of Daily Tous Les Jours, was speaking with Kath Hudson in the current edition of Leisure Management magazine: http://lei.sr?a=O4y2X