What a great use of online and social media by Antwerp Zoo. People were invited to follow the developments of a baby elephant right from the ultra sound to the live birth. Content via Facebook, Flickr and YouTube drove people to the main site where they could suggest a name, view daily news and countdown to the live birth.
If you wanted to watch the birth live you could request prior notification by SMS - not recommended straight after breakfast.
Musicians Rob and Kal invite their online fans into their studio to comment on their new tracks. Wonder if opinionated fans can download the finished songs at a discounted price.
My latest 'lunch hour art' trip involved a flock of Zebra Finches and a selection of musical instruments. This would be Celeste Boursier-Mougenot's 'The Wire' exhibition at the barbican.
The sporadic sounds of electric guitar and symbol combined with the bird song of 40 finches makes for an interesting soundtrack as you enter the exhibition via the dark entrance.
Once inside you can see the free flying finches hop from instrument to instrument while the amplifiers and microphones pick up the birds movements to produce a unique jammin session. Everyone from the ages of 6-60 seemed to be enjoying the show; I was unsure whether their enjoyment came from the live music or from the privilege of being very close to these delicate, tame creatures.
"Celeste intended it to appeal to different senses."
It seems that modern art however does not stop the fundamental social nature of the birds. The males had chosen both their mate and their instrument and would run up and down the strings in an aggressive show of territorial defence. The video has been a big hit on YouTube but this exhibition is quite special and - in my opinion worth a visit.
Consumers from all over the world saying just what they think about branding, blogging and possibly twitter (if only they knew what it was) Interesting but maybe they need a 2010 update. See all the videos here http://trendwatching.com/briefing/
