PALINGENESIS

in collaboration with ORION 3000 + Cyber Flânerie

In its purest form, AR (Augmented Reality) is an interactive experience combining the physical and digital worlds in real time. For palingenesis, MELD envisions a collaboration which will allow the Kifissos River to be re-born, so to speak. The generations of today and tomorrow spend more than 6 hours a day on their smartphones, and playing games is one of their most cherished activities. Hence, it seems natural to propose a cartographic solution based on an Augmented Reality app bringing gamified immersive art contents: Cyber Flânerie.

Cyber Flânerie further unveils a concept of expanded realities. The AR artworks act as conduits, uncovering the intertwining relationship between the physical and digital worlds. They prompt us to question the boundaries between reality and the virtual as we engage with these creations. A fascinating hybrid future unfolds before us—one where distinctions vanish, leading to joyful, reflective, and interactions with a broad and interconnected world. The artworks interactive approaches, illuminate the various links between our environment, humans, and machines, leading us to speculative futures beyond our imagination.

Although ambitious in scope, palingenesis is an opportunity for the Kifissos River to live again - both in the digital world where dreams become a reality, but also in the physical world, where citizens can remember the importance of the river and use their power as citizens to help it to flow once more. Our aim is to feature 8-10 AR artworks (existant and/or curated/commissioned) in AR, strategically placed along the southern region of the Kifissos River, guiding users on a journey of discovery, where each artwork symbolizes a different vision of a sustainable, positive future for the river and its surroundings. We embark in in a lyrical journey anchored on scientific findings, blurring fiction and reality, a web of interwoven stories about deeply personal impacts on our environment and Humankind, representing diverse local and global, Western scientific and indigenous, human and non-human perspectives.

Through this immersive approach, palingenesis not only draws attention to the Kifissos, but seeks to foster a deeper understanding of its environmental and cultural importance. This digital experience, intersecting art and ecological advocacy, has the potential to rekindle awareness of the river as an urban landmark, reconnecting Athenians and visitors alike to the Kifissos while contributing directly to its revitalization.