The School of Design at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) and the Design Lab at the University of Sydney (USYD) are collaborating along the themes of augmented reality and urban playgrounds. This collaboration, managed by New Media Curation, is titled Urban Realities & Augmented Play. The project will consist of a joint exhibition, launch, and publication; all of which will serve as a public platform for emerging interaction design students. On launch night, students, industry experts and academics, and the general public converge to create an environment of creativity and experimentation.


Publication | Forthcoming

Edited by Gwilt, Tomitsch, Saunders & Turnbull | Foreward by Andy Polaine and with essay contributions from Ian Gwilt, Rob Saunders & Petra Gomeinboeck, Matthias H. Haeusler, Martin Tomitsch, Nick Kelly, Keir Winesmith and Deborah Turnbull

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Web Presence | find us on Facebook (Urban Realities...) and Twitter (#urap)

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Press Release | Available at: http://www.newmediacuration.com/media/files/URAP_Press_Release.pdf

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The School of Design at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) and the Design Lab at the University of Sydney (USYD) are collaborating along the themes of augmented reality and urban playgrounds. This collaboration, managed by New Media Curation, is titled Urban Realities & Augmented Play. The project will consist of a joint exhibition, launch, and publication; all of which will serve as a public platform for emerging interaction design students. On launch night, students, industry experts and academics, and the general public converge to create an environment of creativity and experimentation.



ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

The everyday student spaces in the Wilkinson Building will be transformed into a contemporary gallery space featuring an interactive SmartSlab, projected videos and a hall of perspex encased posters. These mixed media platforms will feature the interaction design of augmented reality across the UTS campus. From wayfinding, to interactive research tools, to large-scale broadcasting, these site specific applications were posed by course co-ordinator Ian Gwilt "to enhance the experience of staff, students and visitors to the UTS City Campus and surrounds." At UTS, technical tutor Keir Winesmith involved broadcasting mogul SBS as a community collaborator that provided industry specialists as guest speakers and examiners; where at USYD, independent curator Deborah Turnbull utilised her collaboration with Ausgrid (formerly EnergyAustralia) to inspire students on the theme of urban playgrounds. Site visits to the Grid Gallery at Erskine and Sussex Streets in the CBD, and the Silverwater Learning Centre near the Sydney Olympic Park allowed students to view systems, relationships and platforms for media art commissions, displays, and strategies; in the words of the course co-ordinators Rob Saunders and Martin Tomitsch "both sites provide new media artists with a platform in unique urban contexts."


The design concepts surrounding both of these community collaborations are the subject matter for this engaging and intriguing exhibition.