Future Park coming to SA!.
A digital paradise for kids is coming to South Africa courtesy of YOU. Here's why you don't want to miss out
IMAGINE drawing a fish on a page and within moments it comes alive and is swimming on your wall! Surrounding it is a breathtaking array of amazing sea life, including an octopus your child drew. There was a time when art for kids meant crayons and chalk but a new wave of digital wizardry is opening doors for today’s tech-savvy children.
And now for the first time South Africans can experience a place where technology meets art. Called Future Park, it’s an immersive wonderland where children can see their drawings come to life and adults can play, explore and indulge their imagination as much as kids.
Touring the world, this digital extravaganza has wowed more than four million visitors. And thanks to YOU and its sister publications, Huisgenoot and DRUM, Future Park’s next stop will be SA – it’s coming to Cape Town next month and later moves on to Johannesburg.
Here’s why you shouldn’t miss it. What is Future Park? This exhibition pushes the boundaries of everything you thought you knew about art, science and technology. It’s all about collaboration and interaction.
For instance, it’s not just a matter of admiring beautiful artwork – you actually create the art and then engage with it. Once your drawing of a fish has passed through a scanner to make it come to life, you interact with the fish, feed it virtual fish food and even control its movements.
And you don’t just listen to a piece of music. You compose it. Even if you’re completely tone deaf you’re able to enjoy the experience of being in an orchestra – you can make music simply by moving your body and your musical notes, combined with other visitors’ movements, create a tune. Why it’s great for kids Although originally created as a playground for adults, Future Park has proved to be a big hit with children too, says Shiori Shakuto of TeamLab, which
developed the exhibition. “It charms children because they’re more flexible than adults,” she says.
Elzan Frank, an educational psychologist based in Stellenbosch, believes it offers parents a chance to introduce their children to science, maths and technology in a fun and interactive way.
“Kids like to move – they want to jump and hop around,” Frank adds. “That’s how the world becomes interesting for children. It shows them how exciting science can be.” She’s definitely taking her eight-year-old grandchild to the exhibition.
Frank, who’s practised as a psychologist for 30 years, says primary school kids will enjoy this creative experience. “It will encourage their love of science and technology.” How it all started Teamlab is a group of University of Tokyo graduates who describe themselves as “ultra-technologists”. Among them are engineers, artists, architects, web and print graphic designers, editors and computer graphic (CG) animators.
When they got together in 2001 they were interested in exploring how digital technology could help to expand and amplify artistic expression by allowing viewers to collaborate in the creative process. “Creative expression has existed through static media for most of human history, often using physical objects such as canvas and paint,” they say. “The advent of digital technology allows human expression to become free from these physical constraints.”
They’re also excited about the fact that technology has changed the way we experience art. “Through an interactive relationship between the viewers and the artwork, viewers become an intrinsic part of that artwork.”
Since being launched in 2014 Future Park has entertained people around the world, including in America, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore.