Snapchat continues to explore augmented reality as an artistic medium and a method of showcasing modern artworks.
Together with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Snap has launched a new augmented reality art project. Now, Los Angeles has five digital monuments that can only be seen through the Snap camera.
The Snapchat and LACMA Monumental Perspectives Project
This project is a collaboration between Snap Inc. and LACMA. The main aim of LACMA x Snapchat: Monumental Perspectives is to "explore history and representation for communities" through the digital monuments scattered around LA.
All that one needs to view and engage with the AR installations is the Snapchat app for Android or iOS. You should open the application’s camera and look for the monument markers on the Snap Map.
Each of the augmented reality installations has its own unique history and tells the not-so-widely-known LA stories through a new perspective.
Here’s what Snap has to say about the project:
The five virtual monuments and murals include Mercedes Dorame’s immersive portal between past, present, and future worlds for Indigenous presence in contemporary Tovaangar (Los Angeles), I.R. Bach’s animations designed to inspire self-reflection, Glenn Kaino’s path of generational stories of connectedness along the 1932 L.A. Olympic marathon route, Ruben Ochoa’s homage to the shared history of street vendors in L.A., and Ada Pinkston’s memorial series paying tribute to Biddy Mason.
Snapchat is also planning to release additional programs such as podcasts and art kits related to these digital monuments later this year. It’s possible that soon the project will be expanded and include more artists.
Snap has been exploring AR as an artistic medium for quite some time now. And this is not the only augmented reality project carried out by Snap.
The company’s first major AR art project was launched back in 2017 when visual artists placed 3D sculptures in different locations around the world. Also in 2019, LACMA teamed up with Snap to create Christian Marclay's audiovisual installations Sound Stories.
You Can Still View the Digital Monuments Even if You’re Not in LA
It’s not necessary to be in Los Angeles to take a peek at the new AR digital monuments. LACMA has uploaded a video to its website showcasing those installations. Of course, this won’t replace the real-life experience, but at least you can see what the monuments look like.
To view the AR digital monuments located in Los Angeles, head to lacma.org/monumental.