Summary of presentation and AR workshop | Made of Walking

It has been a couple of weeks since returning from Cyprus and the Made of Walking residency.

This was a really unique residency to be a part of as it linked together many different aspects of my interests in walking, particularly on ideas related to mindfulness and creativity. It was a very valuable experience to be in the company of so many different artists and thinkers who are focused on walking and connecting to nature at a more mindful pace. Some of the other artists explored a diverse range of themes including migration, refugees, plant/human relations and much more. It was very inspiring to spend time with artists who are also motivated to walk and to explore more deeply what it means to be a ‘walking artist’. It is an interest thing to contemplate – the journey being the media, the destination and the process all wrapped together.

Regarding my contribution, firstly I gave a presentation at the Neo Chorio Cultural Centre about some of my work, in particular my augmented reality walking projects involving mapping and active audience participation. The group also played with my recent Sacred Trees work which I built using Unity and Vuforia – here is a little screen capture of the project while I was testing:

TreeTest-Vuforia from bytetime on Vimeo.

After my presentation, we headed up to the cafe where I lead a short workshop looking at different kinds of AR tools and creating content for public spaces.

Here are all the triggers for the AR – you can access them by downloading HP Reveal to your handheld device and following the “Sacred Trees” channel.

Sacred Trees – Lemon

Sacred Trees – Pomegranate

Sacred Trees – Myrrh

Sacred Trees – Fig

Sacred Trees – Turpentine

Sacred Trees – Olive

Sacred Trees – Myrtle

Sacred Trees – Cypress

Sacred Trees – Oak

One of the artists from Scotland, Jen Martin created an audio work which included an interview we had while walking around the village. The piece is about walking in places that are familiar and unfamiliar. I talk about Nightcliff beach and the powerful connection I have to that place through my memories, visions and dreams. The other artist Rosie Montford talked about going off the path and the experience of being lost. Here is a link to the audio

Another of the participants Withold van Ratingen also posted this blog post on his site Metropollination. I did get to his workshop which was a very philosophical take on the theme of nature and observation. We got to look closely at nature using magnifying glasses ro see the intricacies of plants.

Images from Witold’s workshop with magnifying glasses

Images from Witold’s workshop with magnifying glasses

Images from Witold’s workshop with magnifying glasses

What is really wonderful is that the conversations will continue until the next Made of Walking gathering, which I hope to be a part of next year. There may also be an Australian Made of Walking in the future so watch this space 🙂