This Land AR: an Australian Music and Sound XR Installation

Abstract

This demonstration presents a development of an Augmented Reality (AR) Indigenous music and sound installation, an extended reality (XR) interactive audible experiential approach for augmenting audible elements in a public exhibition setting. It is a transmedia initiative as part of a music project, This Land. The project connected contributors and musicians, involving traditional to contemporary vocal and instrumental sounds. This Land project embraces cultural and social perspectives and related contemporary discourses within the Australia context. As augmented reality was being explored as an on-going study for the project, a number of conventional printed wall design (posters and photograph exhibits) were enhanced with augmented musical and sound elements. This Land project commenced as artistic performative event built around many years of collaboration between staff and students from the School of Creative Industries and the Wollotuka Institute at University of Newcastle (UON). Its vision embraces issues of Indigenisation, decolonisation, reciprocity and language revitalisation. A portable version of This Land AR will be used for the demonstration where users could experience features of the prototype system in the public setting.