Sophisticated art stagings are as much a part of the Alter Wall as upscale gastronomy and fine shopping experiences. From tomorrow, visitors to the boulevard in the heart of Hamburg are invited to experience art in a completely new way. A digital sculpture by Berlin-based artist Ju Schnee can be experienced directly via cell phone in augmented reality and enables new perspectives on the historical backdrop of the Alter Wall. The art production was created in cooperation with the art foundation MeetFridaFoundation, a novel initiative to support artists.
Anyone walking along Alter Wall in the next few weeks will come across a floor sticker with a QR code at Alter Wall 12 (Bucerius Passage). Using this, you can easily open Ju Schnee's digital installation "Strolling Around" with your cell phone or tablet.
With the screen facing upwards, the colorful and unusual digital 3D artwork can then be viewed from all sides with the Alter Wall in the background. In this way, augmented reality combines with listed architecture of the iconic building ensemble, which was named "Building of the Year 2020."
"Art has played a prominent role in the Alter Wall from the very beginning. After all, art has the power to inspire people and bring them into dialogue with each other. We are in a tense time right now, and with this campaign we want to give a positive impulse to visit the beautiful city center of Hamburg. The linking of the digital world with the real world is sure to provide one or two unexpected experiences," says Martin Wolfrat, Head of Hamburg at Art-Invest Real Estate.
The artist Ju Schnee studied in Graz and now lives in Berlin. She has exhibited widely in Germany and Austria. In her art, physical and virtual worlds merge
by transferring digital objects into the real world and vice versa. Ju Schnee's artworks range from digital animations and NFTs to realistic paintings in oil and sculptures. "I have wanted to create an augmented reality sculpture for public space for a long time and I am happy that this could now be realized at the Alter Wall. In the middle of the center of Hamburg, a new kind of connection between real and digital is now being created. I hope that the AR installation will inspire and surprise the viewers," comments Ju Schnee.
The art project was developed in cooperation with the MeetFrida Art Foundation, an initiative founded in the summer of 2020 to promote ultra-contemporary artists. In doing so, the foundation links the online gallery (MeetFrida) with art actions in urban environments such as art posters, augmented reality exhibitions and pop-up galleries. MeetFrida represents over 70 artists, giving them new visibility, opening new sales channels, and reaching out to people who previously had few connections to art.
