LONDON, April 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
- Charity's all-star exhibition opens up new dimension on works by Tracy Emin and Jonathan Yeo. First ever use of Aurasma to bring an art exhibition to augmented life
Nine of the nation's leading artists have joined together with homelessness charity Crisis as part of a fantastic art exhibition at Somerset House that is being brought to life using Aurasma's augmented reality.
Works by Anthony Caro, Nathan Coley, Tracey Emin, Antony Gormley, Nika Neelova, Yinka Shonibare MBE, Bob and Roberta Smith, Gillian Wearing and Jonathan Yeo on display respond to themes and issues relating to homelessness - isolation, property, security and space. For the first time those attending the exhibition can point their phones at the paintings on display to view interviews with the artists talking about their work and the exhibition.
Visitors to the Somerset House exhibition can simply download the free Aurasma Lite app and point their smartphone or tablet at the artwork to see it burst to virtual life. For example, embedded in Tracey Emin's work is a short, video of the artist talking about her inspiration and the exhibition. Similarly, the Jonathan Leo piece reveals an interview with Jonathan and the people who sat for the painting on display. What's more, users will also be able to click-through to make donations directly from their smart device.
Click here to see a video of Aurasma and Crisis in action: http://youtu.be/IkXx7xkVbNY
Leslie Morphy, Chief Executive of Crisis, said: "It is incredibly exciting for us to have so many world-renowned contemporary artists creating and donating work for the Crisis Commission. At a time when homelessness is rising again, it is fascinating to see how they have responded to the issue. We're really pleased to have Aurasma bring an entirely new dimension to the exhibition. We hope it can help provide a timely boost to donations and awareness of homelessness issues as we continue to work to transform people's lives across the UK."
Martina King, Managing Director of Aurasma said: "We are delighted to be working with Crisis, a charity that provides education, training and wellbeing services to help homeless people into employment and accommodation. Aurasma's technology can not only help make the process of donating even easier but it also provides an unrivalled opportunity to bring an exciting new digital element to art exhibitions. This is the first exhibition to use Aurasma in this way, and it is paving the way for a future where the clunky headsets given out at museums and galleries are replaced with interactive and informative content embedded in the artworks themselves."
The exhibition also features five works created by homeless or vulnerably housed Crisis artists at Crisis Skylight centres across the country. Information on how to access the additional content using Aurasma will be available to visitors at the exhibition, which runs until 22nd April.
All of the artworks will be sold by auction at Christie's on 3rd May with all proceeds going to Crisis. The cost of commissioning the artwork was met by sponsor GlaxoSmithKline.
The Aurasma Lite app is free to download from the App Store and Android Marketplace.
Aurasma:
http://www.aurasma.com
http://www.facebook.com/aurasma/
http://www.twitter.com/aurasma/
http://www.youtube.com/user/AurasmaLite
http://aurasmalite.tumblr.com/
ABOUT AURASMA
Aurasma is the world's first visual browser - a new augmented reality technology that merges the physical world with the virtual. Available as a free app for newer iPhones, iPads and high-powered Android devices or as a free kernel for developers, Aurasma uses advanced image and pattern recognition to recognise and understand real-world images and objects in much the same way as the human brain does. It then seamlessly blends the real-world with rich interactive content such as videos and animations called "Auras". Auras can be created for printed images, product packaging, clothing, physical places and users can even use the app to create and share their own. Since its launch in June 2011, Aurasma has had more than three million downloads. Over 3,500 partners in markets including retail, fashion, sport, automotive, consumer electronics, entertainment, advertising and publishing are using the free technology in their campaigns, on their products or embedding the technology in their own applications. Aurasma was developed by and is part of software company Autonomy - an HP Company.
ABOUT CRISIS
Crisis is the national charity for single homeless people. We are dedicated to ending homelessness by delivering life-changing services and campaigning for change.
Our innovative education, employment, housing and well-being services address individual needs and help homeless people to transform their lives. We measure our success and can demonstrate tangible results and value for money.
We are determined campaigners, working to prevent people from becoming homeless and advocating solutions informed by research and our direct experience.
We have ambitious plans for the future and are committed to help more people in more places across the UK. We know we won't end homelessness overnight or on our own. But we take a lead, collaborate with others and together make change happen.
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