Augmented reality moves to the art world

Visitors to the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) can experience eye-popping digital artworks by leading Australian and international contemporary artists as part of AR.Trail, one of Australia’s largest ever and free augmented reality (AR) exhibitions.

Viewable through the camera of a smart device, AR artworks by Reko Rennie, Ron Mueck, Alicia Kwade, KAWS and more appear in surprising and unexpected locations at NGV International and The Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia, as well as other key sites at Fed Square, ACMI and the Koorie Heritage Trust.

Presenting works that explore connections to the environment, the human condition and how people inhabit modern cities, AR.Trail will be live across 22 locations until 30 September 2022.

Funded through the Victorian Government’s Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, the AR arts tour will entice audiences into Melbourne’s cultural corridor and enhance their city experience. The groundbreaking AR technology also provides a new and innovative platform for Australian contemporary artists to present their work.

Tony Ellwood AM, Director of the NGV, said the exhibition builds on the gallery's multimedia experience.

"During the global pandemic, the NGV developed and presented cutting-edge virtual art experiences so that audiences continued to have access to arts and culture — even during the periods of lockdown. This Australian-first collaboration with Acute Art proudly builds upon NGV’s leading multimedia experience and will allow audiences to discover art in a way never before possible," Ellwood said.

AR.Trail is a collaboration between London-based Acute Art and Melbourne’s NGV, Fed Square, ACMI and the Koorie Heritage Trust. Acute Art is responsible for app technology that enabled the highly successful AR exhibition across New York’s High Line and is now bringing this cutting-edge technology to Australia for the first time. Throughout the development of AR.Trail in Melbourne, Acute Art worked closely with NGV’s Multimedia Department, who created the 3D imagery for NGV Collection works and scanned geolocation sites for all 22 artworks.

More information, including artwork locations, is available here.

Image credit: © Eugene Hyland