Art / Street Art
Playable City shortlist revealed
Whispering clouds and musical pedestrian crossings are among the ideas to make this year’s Playable City Award shortlist.
Playable City Award is a £30,000 prize given by the Watershed to develop an interactive arts project which will be installed in Bristol this September.
Seven ideas have been whittled down from 197 entries and have now been published on the Watershed website, open to comments which will help the judges make their decision by June 9.
is needed now More than ever
Last year’s award, Shadowing, saw lampposts record people’s shadows and play them back onto the pavement.
The first Playable City Award in 2013 went to Hello Lamp Post!, which allowed people to “talk” to inanimate street furniture through text messages.
This year’s entries are as follows:
Take a Seat by Happy City Lab, Switzerland
Take a Seat encourages strangers to interact on a street bench via a system of sensors and LEDs. Alone, it shines and blinks to attract attention. When someone sits down, it comes to life.
Supernatural by Kevin Walker & Yuri Suzuki, UK
Supernatural creates musical instruments from the city’s natural infrastructure (plants, soil, wood, water) which produce music when touched.
Urbanimals by LAX laboratory for architectural experiments, Poland
Creatures appear to come alive on walls and objects in places where people are just passing through, with normally little time to contemplate their surroundings.
Lighting Conductor by Strange Thoughts Ltd, UK
An interactive, motion-sensitive installation that allows users to conduct a “light orchestra” using only body movement.
Whispering Clouds by Tine Bech, UK
Two clouds will hang over two separate streets – one watching and listening for messages from the city, the other whispering the secrets and messages it has collected to people below.
Puffin Jam by Unsworn Industries, Sweden
At certain pedestrian crossings, push-button units are replaced with similar-looking boxes that also include a touch interface to generates sound which can be heard on the other side.
Why Sit When You Can Play by The Urban Conga, USA
Benches placed in community areas invite passers-by to “play and learn music” through simple LED and sensor technology.