11 minute read
ARTFUL MONSTERS
In search of monsters
Now that we are unfazed by QR codes, new experiences are coming our way. In Bath it’s all about illustrated monsters who have escaped into the city. Dr Matt Freeman explains to Emma Clegg how an exhibition can be brought to life on the streets
Christmas is full of myths and monsters – from St Nicholas, Twelfth Night and Three Wise Men to Krampus, Gryla the troll, and gremlins. Children’s stories and films more generally are also populated with both threatening and benevolent monsters – including the Grinch, Shrek, Golem, Monsters Inc and The Wicked Witch of the South, these narratives help young people to define the idea of good and bad, morality and unkindness. They also show that monsters can be friendly, too, teaching enquiring minds that an offputting or nonbeautiful exterior can hide the warmest of hearts.
So if you’re in search of monsters at Christmas and beyond – and why wouldn’t you be? – visit the Victoria Art Gallery’s Myths and Monsters exhibition, which runs until 27 February, a follow-up to the gallery’s 2017’s blockbuster Here be Dragons. Organised by Gill McLay –co-founder of the Bath Festival of Children’s Literature and Events of Wonder and owner of Bath Literary Agency –the exhibition includes over 20 of the biggest names in book illustration – including Axel Scheffler, Michael Foreman and Cressida Cowell – and their monster creations.
But you may also need to bring your detective hats because this isn’t just an exhibition within four walls – you see, the word is that instead of staying obediently in the gallery, some of the monsters have escaped into the city, and so visitors are being asked to help search for monsters on a free immersive trail around Bath.
The city trail has been developed by Dr Matthew Freeman of Immersive Promotion, based at Bath Spa University. Set up in January this year, the company came about because Freeman had been working on some university projects to boost creative industries in the region and investigate how creative technologies could enhance or create new media experiences. “Immersive was something that a lot of people were starting to think about, but it became very clear that these sorts of technologies are potentially very exciting, but they are not generally widely known. The challenge was finding how to communicate that potential to a layman and this turned into a project.
“The first thing I realised was that the way these sorts of experiences tend to be marketed is with a focus on video gamers and on men. So I spent a couple of years working on how to communicate something that is quite magical but also intangible. It’s one of these things that when you try it you get it, but it’s hard to get across.”
Setting up the company was the obvious next move for Freeman because there wasn’t anyone else doing this. “There are a bunch of people in the immersive sector that are not focused on audience development because they are technology and development focused. Then there are a whole bunch of advertising agencies who lack expertise in marketing immersive experiences because it’s so new. So the company fits in the middle between those two worlds.”
Another crucial insight was that there was a definite market for VR (virtual reality) experiences, but budgets within the sector were invariably small. Which led to the question of how immersive technologies can be used to market other experiences. Freeman’s immersive expertise has already been applied to the University of Bath: “We want to create an open-day experience for prospective students using immersive media. So we’re creating a simple video of a student, like a day in the life, but using 360-degree spacialised sounds, so it creates the feeling that you are actually in the video, walking around the campus. The technology makes use of mobile phones and sound and AR (augmented reality), all things that are second nature to young people, so it makes sense to use that language to try and communicate what a university is.”
Immersive Promotion is also developing a project with the House of Frankenstein in Gay Street, where an immersive approach – already used in the venue with the stimulation of visitors’ senses with sounds and smells and visual spectacles – is part of their long-term plan.
The Myths and Monsters project was a way of giving a new dimension to the famous storybook monsters in the exhibition. Freeman explains, “What if the monsters all escaped around Bath? What if they were all on the loose? If you’re a family you’ve got to go and find them, track them down and get them back into the gallery before they cause any more harm. So I suggested we use AR because it’s the perfect way of bringing a digital, artificial virtual creature into the world in a way that is fun and accessible – because people can just use their phones. So the technology is inclusive and an art exhibition can be brought to people rather than requiring people to visit.”
There are five or six monsters to find and the time it takes depends on how quickly you can decipher the clues, which will be buried across the Victoria Art Gallery website and social media. “Once people find out where they are hidden in locations near the gallery, they will find posters to scan on their phones – after which the monster will step out of the poster and come alive on the phone. You can take pictures of the escaped monsters, and even take a selfie with the monster.”
Freeman assures me that “It’s a piece of very simple technology. No app or data is required, just a QR code and because of the pandemic more and more people are familiar with QR codes. You scan it and the monster pops up on your phone. In the same way you can take a picture of anything, you can take a picture of the monster as well.
“The end of the trail points you towards the actual gallery and more QR codes and then, instead of seeing the monsters, you become the monster, and it blends into your face.”
I take your word for it, Dr Freeman. It sounds like magic to me, but even I can scan a QR code. n
Myths and Monsters is at the Victoria Art Gallery until 27 February 2022. Tickets £2–£6. victoriagal.org.uk; immersivepromotion.com
Even though they really ought
If I had a pound for every time I’ve heard someone tell me that, while going through the process of down-sizing, good furniture and antiques being offered to their next generation were flatly rejected. In this post Ikea age, perhaps there is a social expectation that the more stylistically uncertain simply buy a “Look” off the shelf and then change it when the next “Look” comes along. Watching some of the home make-over shows on TV may leave the viewer with the impression that their homes are to be treated and decorated like stage sets. As an economic model this works very well. As a longer-term strategy, we risk running out of landfill sites.
While it is true that the modern “kitchen diner” does not necessarily need 12 matching chairs and a grand and ornate William IV table, it is also true that at auction a decent Georgian mahogany dining chair will make about half the price of the new flat packed alternative. Even the most up to date kitchen diners need chairs.
Having been born in the early 60’s, I have always thought of post war Scandinavian design, so very popular over the last few years, as the deeply old-fashioned taste of my dear grandparents. There is an antiques trade cliché that what people want is the stuff their grandparents had, and their parents threw out.
These days, throwing out cheaply bought, unfashionable items has
developed a very bad reputation, especially with clothing. The last edition of Vogue, of all influential sources, suggested that vintage, second-hand fashion is the new ‘new’. This rejection of the disposable should really go further than just clothes. Buying new rather than recycling old furniture is on a par with flytipping in my mind but I do appreciate that I have an in-built bias. I can’t imagine why anyone would choose MDF over gloriously figured tropical hardwoods, no longer even legal to harvest but still widely DUNCAN CAMPBELL available at auctions all over the country. Antique silver specialist If those we seek to delight with our interior schemes will only purr at carbon costly new stuff, perhaps we should keep our old furniture and change some of our friends. n beaunashbath.com; 01225 334234
Presence for your Christmas Table
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LEARN PLANT BASED COOKERY
Demuths gift vouchers are the perfect Christmas gift for the foodie in your life. Based in Bath, Demuths Cookery School has been teaching people plant based cooking since 2001 and to celebrate its 20th birthday, the school is now offering a wider than ever range of courses. All vouchers are valid for a year and can be used on any one of its evening, half day or day classes.
Buy a gift voucher at www.demuths.co.uk
HIGHGROVE CELEBRATION CHRISTMAS HAMPER
Celebrate Christmas in gourmet style with the Highgrove Celebration Hamper filled with treats for the festive season and beyond. Presented in a traditional wicker basket, this hamper contains a selection of Highgrove organic foods - the ultimate gift for food lovers! There’s a bottle of dry, crisp and fruity champagne to pop open on Christmas Day, made in France by Laurent-Perrier, and, ready to enjoy with your Christmas meal, a bottle of our dark berry Côtes du Rhône and light and fruity Macon Davayé. You’ll also find a host of traditional Christmas favourites, including a classic boozy Christmas Pudding with Brandy Butter to top it off. As if that wasn’t enough, there’s also Christmas Shortbread. Highgrove even has breakfast and teatime sorted, with classic Prince of Wales blend loose tea tin, as well as strawberry jam, marmalade and fruity chutney, all made by hand to traditional recipes in England. £180.00. There’s a lot more great gift ideas and treats to be found at the Highrove Christmas shop visit: www.highgrovegardens.com
A LIMITED-EDITION CIDER FROM THATCHERS
If you’re looking to treat someone with an extra tasty gift this Christmas, why not try one of the new limited-edition Thatchers Cider Barn range. Each year, the family cider maker delights with short run ciders.This year sees the very welcome return of the award-winning Redstreak (voted the World’s Best Sparkling Cider in 2017). This 8.4% single variety cider is made from local Somerset Redstreak apples. High in tannin and big on flavour, this popular cider has a smooth feel and deep rich colour. It will be available from November, price £2.55 for a 500ml bottle. Available from its Cider Shop in Sandford, Somerset, or online at: www.thatcherscider.co.uk
GREAT SOUNDS IN THE KITCHEN...
.. or any room, the Ruark Audio R1 MK4 is the latest version of the highly popular R1, which was launched 14 years ago, boasting a great design and in-tune with the demands of discerning music lovers. It has retained its excellent sound quality while gaining additional functionality such as bluetooth connectivity and bright OLED display. Available from Moss of Bath –the city’s premium audio visual retail specialists. 45 St James's Parade, Bath. www.mossofbath.co.uk
CONDIMENTS WITH COMPLIMENTS
SMEG APPLIANCES - ALL GIFTS GREAT AND SMALL
Coopers are now one of a few specialist retailers awarded Premio Partner status by SMEG you can now enjoy the full range of large and small SMEG appliances including the newly launched pots and pans collection. Cool and covetable, and a must for 'Foodies' who love spending time creating great things in the kitchen. Coopers 13/15 Walcot Street (opposite Waitrose), Bath. www.coopershomeappliances.com
NEW Wasabi Condiment Collection: £12.25 (each jar 175g) The Wasabi Company, the only growers of wasabi in the UK has completed the hattrick this year with a new Wasabi Tartare Sauce that combines the fire of fresh English grown wasabi with the sharpness of traditional gherkins and capers. Now wasabi lovers can enjoy the award winning wasabi mustard, wasabi mayonnaise and new tartare sauce all in one convenient gift pack – perfect for any curious foodie. Available from www.wasabicompany.co.uk
