Wilin Garden: Keep the Wilin Burning

Keep the Wilin Burning

See your campus turned into a canvas at Victorian College of the Arts, 234 St Kilda Road, Southbank.

Located at the heart of VCA Southbank, the Wilin Garden is the site for the augmented reality artwork, Keep the Wilin Burning.

Come and experience the creation stories of Bunjil (wedge-tailed eagle), Waa (crow) and Wilin (fire) through the lens of your device.

How to navigate the AR experience

This AR artwork is hosted by Adobe Aero and requires an iPhone or iPad, and a Safari browser. Although it is intuitive to use, here are a few things to look out for.

  • Enter the AR experience on your device
    • After you click on the button, check the top of your browser for the Adobe Aero 'Open' button.
    • Allow a minute for the experience to load and tap continue when it is ready.
    • This AR experience is not supported on an Android.
  • Scene set-up
    • Once your camera is working, you will be asked to find a horizontal surface - try to scan your phone over a flat surface like a table, seat or the ground.
    • When the surface is found, tap your device to 'create an anchor'. Your surface will be selected and you can begin your AR experience!
  • Interact

    Go ahead - tap the AR animations on your device to get them to interact with you; walk around to explore them from different angles; and don't forget to listen out for the sounds they make!

  • Record and share

    Record: If you would like to take photos or videos of you and your friends interacting with the AR artwork, tap the camera icon on your device. You will be asked permission to 'record screen and microphone'.

    Share: You can also share your images, videos or the link to the experience by tapping the sharing icon on the top right of your device.

Video: Keep the Wilin Burning

Watch this video to find out more about how this student-led AR artwork was created.

Artist biographies

This artwork was conceived by VCA student, Boonwurrung and Erub artist Amina Briggs, who directed its creation and design. It was brought to life in collaboration with VCA alumni, Quinn Franks, who built, animated, and developed the AR experience.

Amina Briggs, with roots in Boonwurrung, Ugar, and Erub communities, is known for her digital art and mural paintings. Her work dives into topics like identity, feminism, and racism in a straightforward and relatable manner.

Using a mix of traditional and modern styles, Briggs tackles societal issues head-on, offering a clear and contemporary take. Her art speaks volumes, highlighting her perspective on important subjects while staying grounded in her heritage and current influences.

IG handle: @amina.briggs

Quinn Franks (they/he) is an animator based in Narrm. Experienced in 3D animation, motion capture and XR development, Quinn is interested in using new technologies for film and interactive media to develop surreal character driven work. Currently they are focused on using interactive platforms such as virtual and augmented reality as platforms for exploring character and narrative. In their own practice Quinn often employs themes of identity, isolation, unreality and interpersonal tensions through a combination of new media, bizarre imagery and unhinged characters.

Quinn completed both their Bachelor’s and Honours in Animation at the Victorian College of the Arts (University of Melbourne) from 2019 – 2022, in which their research focused on experimental approaches to 3D animation and virtual production pipelines. Quinn has exhibited their work internationally, most recently at the 2023 Ann Arbor Film Festival where they were invited as a panelist to promote in-depth explorations of animated cinema as an art form and to discuss emerging practices within 3D experimental animation.

IG handle: @proceduralgunk

More about the project

  • Wilin Garden

    Borne from protests in the 1990s led by First Nations students and their allies who demanded more visibility on campus, the Wilin Centre was established to uplift and support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists and academics to thrive at the University of Melbourne.

    The Wilin Garden, which also takes its name from this legacy of protest, is a significant site on the VCA Southbank landscape that continues to ignite strength in community.

    Tiriki Onus, Head of the Wilin Centre and the Associate Dean (Indigenous) for the Faculty of Fine Art and Music, describes why fire (Wilin) is at the heart of these places:

    "As allies of the First Peoples of the Kulin Nations, this special site offers the University community an opportunity to come to Wilin Garden with a purpose and to engage with its history and stories.  

    The goal of this project is to help keep the Wilin burning by sharing important history and knowledge about this place, and the land we live, work and study on."

  • Project background

    Initiated by Senior Video Producer Auryn Ona from the Video and Media team within Learning Environments, this project was first conceived as part of an augmented reality series, Campus as Canvas. The idea was to engage students, staff and the broader community with the stories of significant sites around the University by bringing them to life with student-made artworks.

    In collaboration with the Wilin Centre, and with funding from the 2023 SSAF Grant Program, a project team was established, and has been working together at the Wilin Garden to activate an augmented reality artwork experience throughout 2023.

  • Students at the heart

    Co-designed by a student working group for the next generation of students, this project was led by students to be an immersive and accessible experience for the student body.

    A EOI was put out and a First Nations student artist was employed to create an artwork inspired by the Wilin Garden. An alumni animator was also employed to create 3D models and animate the artwork.

    A paid pool of current UoM students was selected through a University Wide callout to participate in a UX/UI co-design working group.

    Watch the videos below to hear what a few of these students had to say about their experience.

  • Creating art, creating allies

    The Wilin Garden AR artwork is an immersive visual experience that will tell the deep and powerful stories of this place and enhance engagement with the cultural history of campus.

    The project hopes to contribute to the ongoing development of our Southbank campus by enriching cultural and social wealth and advance reconciliation and reciprocal learning with local Indigenous peoples and communities, as outlined in the Advancing Melbourne strategy.

    Keep the Wilin Burning contributes to a significant site that ignites strength in community when artists, students and allies come together to celebrate First Nation's art and the VCA landscape.

  • Technology

    The ‘Keep the Wilin Burning’ project began In May 2023 using the pre-release of Geospatial Creator powered by ARCore and Google Maps Platform through Adobe Aero (beta). This technology allowed for collaboration among the project team without the need for specialist developers and coders. Meaning we were able to give University of Melbourne students everything they needed to design and publish an interactive immersive experience site specific to their campus.

This project was supported by the SSAF Grant Program at The University of Melbourne.