Virtual Oceans

Long discussion has happened on Minjerribah about a learning centre, part of the Economic Transition Strategy away from mining set to end in 2019. Talk in the community is that QYAC Native Title Corporation is likely to build a Whale Learning Centre up at Point Lookout on the old tennis courts. Other than the skeletal remains of a hump back whale, the centre is likely to host information about oceans.

Ocean Ark Alliance is an island based entity concerned with deep water cinematography and capturing the world endangered ocean life.

August 12, 2018 Ocean Ark Alliance and Jo Kaspari shared insights into what is going on with the digital depiction of underwater realms in public places across the globe.

Plankton Productions Pty Ltd is an Australian based specialist media production & services company creating & contributing to a wide range of screen projects from Feature Films, TV Documentary, Education to Marine Video Art and Displays.

Of virtual oceans Plankton Productions states

“Ocean covers more than 70% of our planet.

Australias coastline stretches 35,000 km, one the longest of any country in the world, and to the north lie many 1000’s of islands and reefs in the area known as The Coral Triangle … No other area on earth hosts as many marine environments and associated species ranging from tropical to temperate as our region …Nature and life itself happen in ‘real time’ in a natural ebb and flow and literally endless variety in moods and countless magical moments, brought to the screen it becomes a Virtual Ocean”.

Innovations in digital depictions of ocean habitats are happening with entities such The Cube –   $3.5 million dollar installation at Garden’s Point, QUT and iCinema.unsw.edu.au or iDome at the Edith Cowan University

On the east coast of Australian aquariums exist at a number of locations namely;

Melbourneaquarium.com.au

Sydneyaquarium.com.au

Underwaterworld.com.au (Sunshine Coast)

Reefhq.com.au (Great Barrier Reef aquarium, Townsville)

Cairnsaquarium.com.au

Wednesday, March 16, 2016, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk  made announcements of a World-class $100 million aquarium for South Bank. In 2018 she revoked this decision at about the same time as Treasurer Jackie Trade handed over $11 000 000 to QYAC, on world environment day. Jackie Trad said the funding was on top of $20 million allocated to the North Stradbroke Island Economic Transition Strategy in 2016.

Reef virtual realities are indeed a way for people to experience reefs without destroying them. But innovative technologies become quickly antiquated.

Large scale and immersive projections of reef can be a more economical way to share reefs beauty as with Yadegar Asis’s 2015 exhibit at the Asisi Panometer ini Germany with a 1:1 scale installation of the Great Barrier Reef projected on cloth strips.

Perhaps the most innovative depiction of natural phenomena indoors happens in the hands of artists as with the exhibition entitled ‘Rain Room’ which was created by Hannes Koch, Florian Ortkrass and Stuart Wood, three contemporary artists and graduates from the Royal College of Art in London, or Swedish DJ and Artist Eric Prydz Holographic live works in concert in June 2018.

If minimising capital outlays and maximising likes and shares in situ on digital platforms count for anything, holographic innovation is the way to go.