Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is being threatened by aggressive urbanisation and globalisation, particularly in developing nations like Vietnam. As defined by UNESCO, ICH includes social practices, festive events, traditional craft skills, and childhood play.
In this workshop “Crafting AR Lanterns: Future Practice to Preserve the Past” the Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival serves as a provocation for ICH preservation of the future, asking “How do we preserve physical lantern crafting practices in a digitally dominated future?”.
The workshop will guide participants through an exploratory lantern decoration practice, bridging contemporary 3D digital art and hand-craft practices. Attendees will learn to integrate their lanterns into an AR system (SparkAR), design simple lantern games and take part in a mixed-reality lantern parade.
By fostering a creative dialogue between tradition, technological innovation, and contemporary creative practice, the workshop will provoke discussions on the preservation of cultural practices in the age of digital transformation. Participants will not only gain practical skills in crafting AR experiences but also consider the broader implications of using technology to connect the past and the future. The workshop is an opportunity to engage in a critical discussion about ICH whilst creating interactive pieces of art that celebrate our collective past.
NOTE:
Participation in workshop activities will required the following: a charged personal laptop with the software SparkAR Studio installed; a Meta account for working in SparkAR; a charged modern smartphone.
PRESENTERS:
"Quynh Nhu Bui, RMIT
Lucian Rodriguez Lovell, RMIT"
