Beacons Help Animate World War II Sculpture
Visitors to Hyde Park can now hear the story behind a major new artwork that honours Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander diggers by tuning in through an app on their smartphones.
The City of Sydney is trialling Beacons which will be installed at four locations near ‘Yininmadyemi — Thou didst let fall’, a dramatic sculpture by Aboriginal artist Tony Albert that features imposing marble and steel bullets.
When users of the City’s free Sydney Culture Walks App are in Hyde Park South, a beacon will send them a notification letting them know they can listen to the story that inspired Mr Albert’s artwork. If those on the cultural walk already have the app open they’ll see a popup on their smartphone saying, hey you’re near this particular statue — find out more.
The trial will run for 12 months and is being jointly run by the City, Meld Strategies, Brand Culture and Beaconmaker, which are working with the Sydney Culture Walks App developer, We Make Apps.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the Beacon trial was a great way for people to learn about the meaning of the important new artwork, which is one of seven public artworks being commissioned as part of the City’s Eora Journey program, curated by Hetti Perkins.
“By trialling beacon technology the City is bringing this important historical story to the more than 15,000 people who have downloaded the Sydney Culture Walks App,” the Lord Mayor said.
The app features 10 walking tours and includes more than 400 of Sydney’s historical and public art points.
DigitalSignage spoke to Beaconmaker’s VP of Design, Peter Chen, about when and how you should use a beacon.
“Only use beacons when you have great content. Beacons are about getting the right content in front of the user; the right messaging. Who knows, a far more sophisticated technology than beacons may well come along in a few year’s time that allows for a far greater level of interaction, but quality content is still going to be paramount.
“We work with museums and precincts to help them leverage beacons by developing an app that works with beacons out of the box. Which is what we’ve done with the Sydney Opera House, Central Park shopping centre and Australia Museum.
“Last year was about exploration — seeing what beacons could be capable of. This year is about implementation and testing these concepts.
“But remember, without content, beacons are nothing.”
Sydney Culture Walk: sydneyculturewalksapp.com
Beaconmaker: beaconmaker.com
Meld Strategies: meldstrategies.com
Brand Culture: brandculture.com.au
We Make Apps: wemakeapps.net