A Proposal for Curiocity

Introduction

This all started long before the other flightless birds learned not to build nests—at least, they all said they learned better, but what it was they learned and why it was better never seemed too obvious to the Wandering Birds. For themselves, the Wandering Birds liked their nests. They took their time over them, getting them just how they liked, picking over the shapes with their ponderous, complicated feet. They argued with each other over the details of home décor, their enthusiastic cries echoing far into the night.

This year they decided to have a river summer. "So refreshing," said Chumley, who was the oldest and fussiest. Bernice rolled her eyes and clacked her beak, but quietly; she was not planning to lay eggs in the communal pool, and the males were the ones who guarded the nests, so Bernice's innovative ideas about nest interiors hardly ever were paid attention to. She tagged along with the others, silently, holding her favourite fabrics in her beak and under her wings; and when they got to the river she did her part of the building, like the others. This year, she was determined, a young bird would wake up into a world that was properly designed.

Installation Overview

The Wandering Birds... is a site-specific installation for the Rainforest Green at South Bank, which takes the form of a group of nests of imaginary giant birds. Visitors are invited to explore the nests, enjoying their physical nature while also speculating the mystery of the birds who built them; the aim is to invoke both fun and curiosity, important parts of play. There will be five nests, clustered together as a miniature neighbourhood; the nests will be constructed of brightly-coloured, weather-safe soft materials and fabrics. Programmable ambient light and sound will make the nests visible and compelling after dark.

This project is a collaboration between Michelle Vine and Seth Ellis—the first time we have fully collaborated, though we have previously worked on each others' projects. The Wandering Birds... is a synthesis of elements from our two practices—Michelle's accessible, tactile installations, and Seth's imaginative site-specific storytelling.

These birds are imagined to be distinct individuals; accordingly, the nests themselves have distinct characters. In addition, there is an AR level of the experience, that delves more into the lives of these birds (who never appear in person). They are based on the Dromornithids, or mihirungs (Tjapwuring, Western Victoria, for "giant bird")—Australian megafauna resembling emus that could reach 3m tall. They went extinct in the Pleistocene era, 50,000 to 20,000 years ago.

The Wandering Birds who are the focus of this installation won't be identified as mihirungs, but everything in it will be consistent with what's scientifically known about them. Thus the AR/digital component becomes an integral part of the proposed education/outreach aspect of the project, described below.

The Visitors' Experience

Accessibility is a priority for us, as reflected in an experience that will be multisensory and multilatered, to be enjoyed in multiple ways by people with a wide variety of starting points.

1. The physical installation: The nests will be constructed out of sustainably sourced, weather-resistant materials and fabrics. They will be tactile, visual, and aural; lights will be embedded in the structure, and ambient sound will play within or around the nests. Visitors are encouraged to play, explore, and relax in the nests.
2. The narrative installation: The birds, being individuals, have individual stories and shared dramas. These narrative will be shared with visitors through two different Augmented Reality elements:
   • in the first, audio-only, QR codes will lead to site-specific, nest-specific audio stories about the birds, their habits, and their relationships. These stories will be imaginative and playful, while also consistent with what we know about prehistoric giant birds. See a similar previous written project online.
   • in the second, a single QR code will open a set of visual AR elements, designed to hint at the birds without revealing them: shadows against the trees, footprints on the ground, moving shapes in the stuffed eggs to be found in the nests.
3. Remote experience: The narrative and AR elements will be hosted on a dedicated project website, that can also be used as the focus of further community activities, as explained in Education/Outreach. These elements will remain available online during and after Curiocity.

Education/Outreach

This project includes a proposal for workshops in primary schools.

We will lead kids through speculating what prehistoric giant birds might have looked like, and drawing their interpretations. These can be saved to the project website, either by scanning in physical drawings, or because the drawing happens in an online interface. Those images then automatically become part of the AR component, so that in-person visitors to the Green can choose to view the kids' drawings at "life size." The website would remain live after the festival, so the imagery would still be accessible via AR. Also, since it would be online, the general public could also create their own drawings to be seen on the Green.

Technical Specifications

1. Nest design: The nests will be made of waterproof and water-resistant canvas in both printed and plain designs. The supports will be a combination of pool noodles, and responsibly repurposed industrial materials including pipe insulation and flexible tubing conduit, with a fabricated metal support frame. All construction will be undertaken with sustainability in mind.
2. Site impact: We will work with the site manager to ensure that the nests do not negatively impact the grass and other flora on the Rainforest Green. The nests will be lightweight enough to move if necessary; they might also be floored with netting or other light-permitting materials.
3. Ambient light and sound: The installation will incorporate weather-resistant LEDs and small speakers, audible within and around the nests.
4. Spoken narrative: fictional, narrated stories of the individual birds will be accessible through QR codes and/or geolocated sound (through an audio platform such as echoes.xyz).
5. Augmented Reality: faint traces of the birds will be visible through an AR platform: shadows nearby, footprints, traces of food. This aspect of the project will be developed through WebAR and hosted on a dedicated project website. It will thus remain live and accessible after Curiocity (as will the spoken narratives, above).

Indicative Budget

Main installation: $40,000

This includes 5 nests, ambient light and sound, with augmented reality (narration, some visuals).

Educational and outreach programs: $8,000

Includes a website showcasing the materials, with in-person workshop leading drawing/storytelling activities based in paleontology (i.e., speculating what prehistoric giant birds might have been like). This supposes 2 workshop deliveries.

Relevant Previous Works

Michelle Vine's Revolutionary Rest Nests (2018) use the classic nest form as a means of encouraging rest as an act of rebellion against expectations of productivity and stress. Versions of the nests have previously been used at festivals (as pictured at right) and are thus used to braving the elements.