Visitors to Expo 2020 Dubai are being invited to explore a new series of physical and digital experiences that celebrate Dubai’s unique role in connecting the world and the UAE’s status as a global cultural hub. The augmented reality (AR) experience ‘Connections,’ created in collaboration with Snap Inc. and located in Al Forsan Park, is open until the end of Expo 2020 Dubai on March 31, 2020.
As a cross-cultural collaboration between French artist Cyril Lancelin and Emirati artist and Snap Star Ahmad Ali, the activation brings to life the Expo theme of ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future.’ The experience is rooted in a one-of-a-kind physical art piece developed by Lancelin, against which Ali has overlaid interactive experiences for Expo guests using Snap’s world-leading AR technology.
Lancelin’s artwork is inspired by Arabic geometry and patterns, and is made up of a variety of shapes that form an immersive ‘cube,’ with the cube’s labyrinthine structure offering a unique area for exploration and contemplation. Visitors may access AR experiences built by Ali and inspired by his Emirati roots by using the Snap Camera within the cube.
Hussein Freijeh, General Manager for MENA at Snap Inc, said: “Snapchat has a legacy of storytelling in the Middle East, and we are constantly pioneering new ways for people to combine what they see in the real world with all that’s available to them in the digital world, representing the power of ‘Connections’. We also want to make AR more accessible to everyone as we believe it has the power to change the way we tell stories and interact with the world – to entertain, to inform, and to transform our connections in truly unimaginable ways. The compositions created by the two contributing artists are sure to captivate all who visit.”
Rehan Asad, Chief Programme Officer, Expo 2020 Dubai said: “Expo 2020 Dubai offers visitors a glimpse into some of the world’s most unique architectural and cultural wonders. With that in mind and through this collaboration with Snap, we are taking that promise one step further, using the power of augmented reality to both entertain and inspire the world virtually on any device from any part of the globe.”
Visitors can also virtually explore some of the visionary quotes by UAE leaders over the last 50 years, and another AR Lens virtually merges all participating Expo countries’ flags together in the shape of the UAE flag, with the colours then dissolving into those of the host nation’s flag. The experiences continue around Expo with specially designed AR face lenses available through dedicated Snap Codes on site.
