How El Segundo is becoming the Augmented Reality city
The young woman sits on a hill in the middle of El Segundo. She has sun-blessed skin, high cheekbones, and angular, striking features. A long black braid of hair cascades down her bare shoulder and her chin rests contemplatively on the back of her hand, a faraway look in her eyes.
As you walk through the surrounding park towards where she rests, just beneath the El Segundo Library, you will already be struck by the beauty you are beholding. A tree slants up at an odd, perpendicular angle, flowers bloom yellow petals, and small blue waves curl unexpectedly to your left. Then something magical happens. Big blue butterflies begin to flutter all around you, a small blue pool swirls between you and the woman, and sparklets of light pop all around you. It feels like you’ve traveled somewhere else, kind of like Pandora, the wild planet in the Avatar movie. Everything is somehow more vibrantly alive.
But no, this is not another planet. This is El Segundo, centuries ago. She is a Tongva maiden, painted by Nanibah Chacon, a renowned Diné and Chicana artist, the subject of an 8 ft. by 40 ft. mural titled “Portals to Memory.” The mural was commissioned in 2019 by the City of El Segundo and formerly was located inside the library. But now, through the El Segundo Art Walk’s ongoing project that is applying Augmented Reality (AR) technology to public art throughout the city, the mural has moved outside, and come fully alive.
“This beautiful piece is now outside for the public to really enjoy,” said John McCullough, ESAW’s event producer. “The AR aspect adds a peaceful, surreal element with flowers waving and butterflies flying around."
The mural “celebrates the beauty of wonder and our innate need to create objects that are reflective of what we see in nature,” an artist’s statement released at the time of the mural’s original unveiling noted. “Nature has always been our first teacher with its vast mysteries and abundant systems of knowledge.” And while Native American ways of knowing and Augmented Reality might seem like very different ways of interacting with the world, the ESAW AR project has somehow done exactly this – it has added an unexpected layer of wonder throughout the city.
The project began last year with a large fox leaping out of a wall mural on Grand Avenue, a floating AR gallery outside City Hall showing 10 pieces of of public art within the city (and an AR map showing locations of the art) and the augmentation of a 109 ft. mural on Main Street in which kids playing soccer moved through the waving field of grass.
The idea that drove the AR project was ESAW’s ambition to expand the reach of the Art Walk, not only beyond the one day the year that it takes place, but into the digital realms in which younger people, so-called “digital natives,” are more likely to engage with public art. ESAW had already started commissioning murals in years past, but the idea to add AR promised to reach new audiences.
It worked. The ESAW AR project was a hit. People have viewed the artworks over 270,000 times through the AR lenses.
"The Augmented Reality murals and experiences have been blowing up on social media, with views and user engagement far exceeding our expectations,” McCullough said. “It's unlike anything any other cities are doing, and I think people are taking notice, like, 'Wow, this is outstanding.'"
ESAW Art Director George Renfro said the technology may be new but the intent is the same as all art, enhancing our sense of reality so that we can see what already exists with fresh eyes.
“Augmented Reality has been around for a while, but it hasn't reached critical mass,” Renfro said. “Maybe we take photos with selfie filters with AR, but in terms of how it’s used in other areas, we are still experimenting. So I think this is the perfect use of it.”
“A mural is flat,” he said. “It's just that – paint on a flat plane. But like it says right in the name, AR, it's augmented. It's sort of a different take on reality….It's a way to make this art more memorable, so you are going to have more of a connection. AR gives the art another angle to say something else.”
The way it works is through “lenses” available free on Snapchat, the increasingly popular instant messaging app that promises to be much more than just a messaging app. Through the ESAW AR lens, El Segundo’s public art is augmented – and can be photographed as such, or simply viewed.
The AR project arose because a young, emerging “reality designer” named Christian Enriquez crossed paths with McCullough at an ESMoA art show in which Enriquez had augmented the work of movie production designer Rick Carter (of Star Wars, Avatar, Back to the Future, and The Polar Express fame).
“I want to make El Segundo an AR city,” Enriquez told McCullough.
Enriquez is an El Segundo resident and founder of his own creative firm, Reality Experience Design. He graduated from prestigious SNAP Lens Academy and launched his career in the emerging field of AR. And El Segundo being El Segundo – the small town where big things happen – a SNAP executive, Matt Cano, also lived here. He enthusiastically backed the ESAW AR project.
The rest is history, and the future.
"AR is a wonderful tool that breaks barriers,” Enriquez said. “It allows for immersive learning and interaction with the environment. For example, imagine a planet appearing in front of you from a mural, and you can move it around, creating your own artwork. We're creating a fourth dimension to things."
Enriquez said that uses of this new dimension are at their very outset.
"I've been part of several panels discussing how this technology can be used in untapped areas. It's beneficial to all industries,” he said. “For example, AR can help people communicate through sign language without knowing it themselves. We're making the world a better place one experience at a time," he says.
This year, in addition to “Portals of Memory,” two other pieces of art have been given AR enhancements (as well as a beer can, which we’ll talk about in a little bit). “The Spirit of Aerospace”, a 30 ft. high, 118 ft. long mural adorning the Masonic Temple on Main Street, offers a dynamic and energetic AR experience. The mural, painted by artist Scott Bloomfield in 1997 and sponsored by Hughes Electronics Corporation, is one of El Segundo’s first commissioned pieces of public art. It depicts the history-making impact of the local aerospace industry, showing rocket and space shuttle launches, the Earth from space, and the engineers who made the local industry a global leader.
It’s a mural that has been around so long people might walk by and not even see it. AR changes that. “It comes alive with elements that explode, rumble, and soar, creating a lively and captivating display," Renfro said.
The ER project this year is also moving beyond publicly commissioned art and into private sector public art (and cans). When guests check in to the Embassy Suites hotel, they might be surprised to look at Snapchat and find a small flock of El Segundo Blue Butterflies floating through the lobby. This is an example, likely to be followed in other cities, of how AR can be integrated into urban development. The City of El Segundo’s “Success Fund” requires developers to allocate 1% of their budget to public art if their project exceeds $2 million in value. Developers have the option to either contribute to the city’s art fund, or invest directly in creating new art for their project.
"Embassy Suites chose to augment their front mosaic instead of paying into the fund, demonstrating how developers can incorporate art into the city's plan," McCullough said. "This choice allows businesses to actively participate in the city’s artistic vision while meeting their development obligations. We're hosting a kickoff event with businesses and artists to celebrate this success. Any new piece of art funded through the 1% plan will ideally be incorporated into the AR plan, building an extensive AR map."
The vision, in other words, is coming true: El Segundo is becoming an AR city. Maybe the most convincing proof of this is the final AR project taking place as part of ESAW this year: the aforementioned beer can. The El Segundo Brewing Company has long been a supporter of the Art Walk, but this year is taking things to a new, augmented level. ESBC not only is brewing a special beer specifically for the Art Walk, but commissioned world-renowned wave artist Phil Roberts to paint the can. Roberts is famous for his Surfer magazine covers, Pipeline Masters trophies, and the Dewey Weber sculpture in Hermosa Beach, among many other things; but foremost, he may be the most skilled painter of waves in the history of surfing. Enriquez is applying his AR wizardry to the can, which will depict a surfer jumping into a wave at the El Segundo jetty. The twist is that using not only your beer goggles, but your AR lens, the wave and the surfer will come alive, foaming and surfing.
“People can scan the code and watch the surfer on the can jump into and ride a wave,” McCullough said. “It's something you can experience every day.”
The El Segundo Art Walk is not just a showcase of AR's potential but also a testament to community involvement and innovative thinking.
"We're a team brought together by our love of augmented reality and our mission to make the world a better place, one experience at a time," Enriquez says.
The vision for AR in El Segundo is expansive. With more developments on the horizon, the city could feature as many as 25 AR pieces in the next five years, ranging from sculptures to mosaics and murals. Each piece will contribute to the vibrant, interactive tapestry that increasingly defines the local public art scene.
Mayor Drew Boyles said that ESAW’s use of AR – which has been financially supported by the City – has helped shine a light on El Segundo.
“The Art Walk continues to innovate and bring excitement and energy to El Segundo,” Boyles said. “The Art Walk is a model for showcasing the amazingness of El Segundo, and we have other organizations looking to emulate its success.”
The ESAW AR project will continue to shine that light.
"We're a team brought together by our love of augmented reality and our mission to make the world a better place,” Enriquez said. “One experience at a time."
