Snapchat's AR art installations are live in select cities
Other artists can submit their own work for consideration, too.
It's finally time for Snapchat's new augmented reality art project to be revealed. The feature, leaked yesterday via the hack of a web countdown clock on art.snapchat.com, puts artist Jeff Koos' signature giant balloon animal installations in several locations, including Champ de Mars, Paris, Central Park, New York, Hyde Park in London, Roundhouse Park in Toronto, Sydney Opera House, Millenium Park in Chicago, Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, National Mall in Washington DC and Venice Boardwalk in California. So far, it's just Koons' art that's available; there's a web form for other artists to submit their own work for consideration. The countdown ran down at 3PM ET today.
The art installation tool looks a lot like Snapchat's world lens technology, which brings animations into the real world via your smartphone camera, much like AR app Holo does. Snap has opened up the AR system to advertisers, as well, including Warner Bros. and Bud Light. If you're an artist, you can submit your own art for consideration. Clicking the Artists Welcome button on Snap's art page leads to a form to fill in with your name, email, link to your art portfolio, and a spot to tell them more about yourself.
To find Koons' artwork, you'll need to have the latest Snapchat app update and be within 300m of the Lens location. Tap the camera screen to bring up the Lens carousel and you should see the installation easily -- they're the equivalent of three stories tall. If you're a bit too far off, an on-screen guide will take you to the Lens. Sculptures will be available at each location for a couple of weeks, a Snap spokesperson told Engadget, and will travel to a new spot, which will show up on the art website, too.
