'Believe' event at MediaCityUK will bring Lowry to life and dinosaurs to the 21st Century

By Kate Banks

A stunning showcase of digital art and technology is being held at the MediaCityUK on Saturday 12 November.

Believe is a free event celebrating the latest in digital creativity and entertainment, hosted by the University of Salford at its new building.

Jon Corner, the University of Salford’s MediaCityUK Director, hopes the occasion will demonstrate what the Media City offers to students, businesses and the wider community.

Mr Corner said: “Believe is one of our biggest events this year and is our way of inviting the local community to help us celebrate the opening of our MediaCityUK building.”

Free buses from Salford Quays and free trams from the city centre and Eccles is all part of Salford University’s bid to include everyone in its new home.

Project Leader, Dan Foster, said: “It is a mass celebration and engagement day, which will show people the building is not just for students in various different ways.”

There will be eight different showcase events in the exhibition, of which Lowry to Life, a digital re-imagining of LS Lowry’s Piccadilly Gardens painting, will be the centrepiece.

People at the gardens on 12 November can literally become part of the art, as special motion technology will capture their movements and project them onto a screen at MediaCityUK.

Their movements will then be transferred onto Lowry characters on the giant version of the picture at MediaCityUK, making the painting come to life.

Lowry is famously linked with Salford, explaining his inclusion in the exhibition, but Piccadilly Gardens was chosen specifically over his other works.

Mr Foster said the angle from where the footage will be filmed mirrors the original painting perfectly, making the re-mastering even more spectacular.

He said: “It was also chosen to include the city centre and show connectivity between the two sites, Lowry to Life really encapsulates that.”

Michael Simpson, Head of Galleries at The Lowry Centre, celebrates Believe’s fusion of art and technology.

“The Lowry is delighted that significant arts events are being staged on The Quays. L.S Lowry loved painting people going about their daily lives,” he said.

“Bringing Lowry to life in this way will be a unique chance for us all to become a figure in a Lowry landscape again and it will be fascinating to see the results.”

Other features of the event include iPad-like touchscreen tables and a 7m x 3m video wall with the world’s best resolution, showing impressive film and animation.

Visitors can also star in an adventure with BBC’s Dinosaur Planet at the University’s on-site TV studios and then download the clip to keep.

The green screen technology and realistic sets will make people feel like they are running from T Rex’s or tickling a Tenontosaurus, Mr Foster said.

A programme of workshops on animation, special effects, film production and writing will also run throughout the day.

Believe is free and is open from 10.30am-5.30pm on Saturday 12 November at MediaCityUK, Salford, M50 2HE. Visit www.salford.ac.uk/believe for more information.