Wild in Art, Mediaworks and Factory are behind the bee in the City app, which has so far had more than 17k downloads.
The app includes an augmented reality bee, pedometer and integration with Ocean’s outdoor digital screens. To date it has had nearly 1m bee unlocks, which offer players the chance to earn rewards around the art trail.
“It’s been a great project to work on creating the augmented reality Bee. We have worked with many, much loved characters in our animated series, but this demonstrates the talent and ability of our team, and highlights the quality and flexible production resources that we have,” explained Phil Chalk, managing director at Factory.
The app helps people track down the super-sized bees painted by artists, plus little bees created by children and young people. The AR Bee Buzzi can be seen flying to its “hive” on St Peter’s Square by looking through the camera on mobile devices.
The partnership with Ocean Outdoor means that players can see themselves on advertising screens if they upload their photos and Twitter handles through the app.
“The app brings even more enjoyment to Bee in the City, which transforms Manchester into a fun, free, family-friendly art gallery this summer. The art trail marks a significant milestone in Wild in Art’s history of connecting communities, businesses, and artists through creativity, and we’re delighted to be working alongside Mediaworks, Factory and Ocean Outdoor to deliver a fitting app,” added Ruth McAllister, marketing director at Wild in Art.
The net profits from the trail, which finishes on 23rd September, are being donated to the Lord Mayor of Manchester’s We Love MCR Charity.
