Digital Nottingham is collaborating with Nottingham City Council in creating a year-long conversation about the Carbon Neutral agenda with the city. We want to engage an artist, designer or other creative practitioner to make a visual and interactive response to data collected through Hello Nottingham, a project which lets you take part in playful and thought-provoking conversations about Climate Change with objects and places around the city.

This conversation is being supported by the use of an interactive playful city-wide layer of talking street furniture objects facilitated by experienced providers Hello Lamp Post. University of Nottingham have also recently developed some ‘virtual objects’ that can be shared via online platforms, screens, social media. The Hello Lamp Post infrastructure provides access to a database of sentiment around the issue of climate change garnered from micro interactions across the city. It is this database that you will use to develop your proposed creative response.

This conversation with the city is part of the Digital Nottingham ‘City as Lab’ engagement programme through which we will work with external partners on shared research objectives. It will help to establish Digital Nottingham’s civic engagement agenda and will broaden the reach of these engagements far beyond the normal sites of such debates and discussions – literally taking these out on the street and out to the people.

This ongoing project is helping to:

• Establish a baseline for CN28 awareness
• Identify priorities for engagement and communications work
• Understand the behaviours, values and attitudes relating to CN28 and living sustainably. This commission will respond to the learning so far and will also provide the means to highlight and engage the city with this agenda.

Hello Nottingham lets you take part in playful and thought-provoking conversations with objects and places around the city. It’s easy to have these conversations using your mobile phone by following the instructions on signs placed around the city. By chatting with Hello Nottingham, you can have your say and influence climate action in Nottingham or simply find out what it’s all about!

Conversations will focus on tackling climate change and Nottingham’s ambition to be carbon neutral by 2028 (CN28). We’re interested in how people feel, what they think is important, and what they want to do.

If you see a talking object, say “Ay up!”

Digital Nottingham is a new civic and research initiative that aims to inspire collaboration, curiosity and problem solving in Nottingham and the East Midlands region.

Your project could take the form of an artwork, installation or other creative visual and interactive experience. It should make use of technology in a way that drives the audience's engagement with the work.

Creation of your project will take place throughout July–September 2023. The outcome(s) will be showcased as part of Nottingham Green Festival, Sunday 10 September 2023.

The project outcomes you propose should:

• Create a visual and interactive response to data collected through the Hello Nottingham project.
• Visually present conversational data focusing on tackling climate change and Nottingham’s ambition to be carbon neutral by 2028 (CN28).
• Highlight and engage the city with the CN28 agenda.
• Contextualise the behaviours, values and attitudes relating to CN28 and living sustainably.
• Be able to be presented outdoors as part of Nottingham Green Festival taking place in Nottingham's Arboretum public park.
• Be designed to be shown in other locations and settings, with consideration of storage and transport.

In your application proposal, you should consider the following questions:

• How will you use the available data to visually communicate how people feel, what they think is important, and what they want to do about Climate Change?
• What will audiences see and do when experiencing what you make?
• How can audiences continue to contribute and evolve the work itself?
• How and where will the work need to be stored when it is not being shown?
• How will you ensure the project can run outdoors? Will it require a power source? Will it be weather-proof or require cover?
• How will the work be transported for exhibition?
• What are the ongoing requirements and costs of continuing to run and maintain the project for future showcasing opportunities?

A fee of £4,000. Inclusive of all costs associated with the production of your proposed project. This fee will also include the costs of presenting your project's outcome(s) at Nottingham Green Festival on Sunday 10 September 2023.

Including an initial kick-off meeting and regular check-ins with stakeholders, designing the instructions, creating or sourcing materials and compiling signposting information.

We will assist with production of the project through offering critical feedback throughout its development, use of our creative spaces to work in residency, use of Near Now Studio technology and equipment, access to Broadway audiences for testing and feedback, promotion and marketing support, temporary storage and assistance with transport of the work.

We are seeking a socially engaged artist to develop a visual and interactive artwork in response to data collected through Hello Nottingham.

You can apply as an individual or as a group.

You may be interested or specialise in any of the following areas:

• Data visualisation
• Digital design
• Interactive art
• Creative coding
• Public art

Applications open on Friday 7 July 2023.

Applications close on Sunday 16 July 2023, 11:59PM.

Complete the online application form: