Vävda rum (Woven places) is Sweden’s first national exhibition in augmented reality. The project presents ten virtual public artworks in almost half of Sweden’s municipalities, changing the experience of urban space with interventions ranging from sculptural social networks to hordes of reindeer and water spirits shaped by local climate data. The exhibition can be experienced in over 130 locations all over Sweden in the Vävda rum app between May 20 and September 30, 2023.
The artworks, created by ten contemporary artists based in Sweden, use the latest technological developments within augmented reality, scalable networking infrastructures and similar technologies to create an immersive experience beyond anything previously done in this field. Vävda rum aims to create collective experiences in public spaces, focusing on what unites and connects us. Visitors are given the opportunity to rediscover their own surroundings and explore new perspectives on familiar places through exciting and thought-provoking experiences on topics such as the environment, community, storytelling, the body, ageing, and the threats and potential of technology in shaping ourselves and our surroundings.
Each artwork is tailored to a public space such as a square, a fountain, or an empty lot. In the participating municipalities, one or several local art and cultural associations have placed the ten artworks in corresponding public places where they can be experienced in AR. The artworks are interactive, and several are virtually interconnected, enabling visitors in diferent locations to interact with eachother.
With their roughly 620 member associations and nationwide network of exhibition organizers Riksförbundet Sveriges Konstföreningar (The National Association of Swedish Art Societies) strive to make contemporary art accessible to everyone, regardless of where in the country you live. Vävda rum is part of their 50th anniversary, and creates opportunities for intergenerational encounters by connecting local and regional art and cultural life across the entire country. The project also explores a new infrastructure for large-scale exhibition formats with minimal ecological footprint and great potential for dissemination.
Link: http://vavdarum.se/