Starting on October 19, visitors of the Central Park can immerse themselves in a delightful series of interactive augmented reality installations! We invite you to explore the lesser-known wonders of the biodiversity in this beloved and bustling green space (find more details on-site: LOC. Parcul Central.)

These magical virtual installations were created by talented local artists working hand-in-hand with ecology and biodiversity experts, in a wonderful collaboration between Reactor de creație și experiment and Clujul Sustenabil.

The creative works were envisioned by Gál Orsolya, Ioana Hogman, Marius Mornea, and Mihai Păcurar. During an exciting workshop in early July, they met with passionate ecology and biology specialists Natalia Ciobanu, Eliana Sevianu, and Mihai Savu. Together, they explored inspiring ideas at the crossroads of human life and the wonderful ecosystems thriving in our city's green spaces. The spotlight was on Central Park and its incredible biodiversity, exploring how our human actions over the last decades shape this beautiful ecosystem.

You can read all about this fantastic journey of shared and individual discoveries in a special book documenting the LOC. Parcul Central project, which will be joyfully launched alongside the interactive installations!

On October 19, 2024, at 4:00 PM, these amazing augmented reality installations in Central Park will spring to life! Come and explore them on-site. The grand opening tour will be guided by the creators themselves, starting from the main entrance of the park (right by the Hungarian State Theatre) and leading all the way to the Casino and Chios Lake, where many of these wonderful artworks await you.

This exciting event is perfect for theater lovers and visitors of all ages! To enjoy the installations, all you need is a mobile phone with internet access and a pair of headphones.

These whimsical augmented reality experiences will lead you through the hidden world of the park's birds, share the history of the park over the last 200 years from a playful insect's perspective, and build beautiful new bridges of understanding between people, plants, and our shared ecosystem of the past, present, and future.

Labyrinth is the enchanting creation of artist Gál Orsolya, inviting you to wander through a hidden maze tucked away in the park's green heart. Along the way, you'll step through sensory zones of entirely different ecosystems, opening secret portals to fantastic parallel worlds!

In Monuments of Latency, Ioana Hogman presents a series of installations celebrating our relationship with plants—both the ones that nourish us and those that friendly companion us in our city's public spaces. This lovely visual and audio experience is a perfect invitation to celebrate our harmonious, symbiotic bond with nature.

Marius Mornea, wearing the hats of both sustainability specialist and artist, presents Palette of the Shores, a charming look at the park's history through the eyes of a fascinating insect species living in Chios Lake. Caddisfly larvae develop beneath the water's surface and are famous for the cozy tube-like shelters they build. This creative installation draws a playful parallel between the park's development and the building materials available to these tiny architects over the past 200 years!

Birds of the Park is a spectacular installation by Mihai Păcurar where you can meet five bird species that call this park home. They will appear in larger-than-life sizes, as if you've stepped into a playful dinosaur park! This fun experience also features a delightful soundscape sharing secrets about how these feathered friends help our ecosystem thrive.

What is LOC?

LOC is a wonderful, innovative platform dedicated to exploring alternative ways of living and sharing space in Cluj-Napoca. Its heartwarming mission is to give citizens the space and creative tools to explore what it means to live in the city through the lens of global warming, resource sharing, urban planning, and, of course, our beautiful relationship with the environment.

The magical LOC platform works via an augmented reality app that acts as an open-air AR gallery! You can access these creative projects right on-site in the vibrant city of Cluj, or anywhere else you like with a few fun instructions.

This wonderful journey will unfold over several years, with each exciting stage bringing a brand-new installation to life in the real public spaces of Cluj.

LOC was dreamed up by Mihai Păcurar, an inspiring interdisciplinary artist whose work spans a wide and exciting spectrum of interconnected media. With a grand passion for the theatre, Mihai has worked as a set designer and video artist on over 80 theatrical productions in both state and independent venues! He is absolutely thrilled to keep exploring the magical intersection of art and technology to create a wonderful space for research, education, and theatrical sound-and-image experiments through the Postnational Interfonic Theatre.

This project was proudly initiated and developed by Reactor de creație și experiment.

Partners: Clujul Sustenabil, Cluj Cultural Centre, and the Faculty of Environmental Science and Engineering at Babeș-Bolyai University.

Augmented reality module beautifully crafted by the Augmented Space Agency. 

A cultural project co-funded by the National Cultural Fund Administration. The project does not necessarily represent the position of the National Cultural Fund Administration. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the program or how its results may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the grant beneficiary.

Project warmly supported by the City Hall and Local Council of Cluj-Napoca.

Like this post? Share the joy!FacebookTwitterGoogle+LinkedInPinterest