QV Laneway Series

QV Melbourne is thrilled to announce the QV Laneway Series: a seasonal program of ongoing interactive outdoor events, festivals and activations in the QV Square and surrounding laneways.

To launch the series, QV has commissioned globally acclaimed Danish artist Tine Bech to complete her first Australian work, which will be the centrepiece of a new interactive program of events called Light / Play. The celebration of light and play will herald the end of winter from Friday 25 August – Sunday 10 September.

With a PhD in -Play', Tine Bech is a multidisciplinary artist who creates innovative interactive art that encourages participation and most of all, play. Her work has been exhibited in public spaces, galleries and at major festivals, transforming urban landmarks in cities around the world. Some of Tine's previous work includes interactive artworks at London Bridge Live Art Festival, Denmark's On the Edge Digital Art Festival, Israel Museum, Los Angeles' SIGGRAPH Art Gallery and a -playable city' on water in Recife, Brazil.

Tine's new work, entitled Colour Me Beautiful, will create a playful new environment for social interaction, experienced for the very first time at QV Melbourne. Tine Bech will visit Melbourne to premiere the new artwork, and will engage with Melbourne audiences as they interact and respond to her work.

'I don't define play as being only for children. Our own evolution and survival as a species shows the centrality of play. We learn how to deal with risk through play – through exploration, testing, and thereby learning and adapting. I believe that play is integral to culture; it is part of our social fabric and lies at the core of social bonds," says Tine.

Featuring five colourful runways leading to a vivid landscape of images, Colour Me Beautiful invites the public to play and perform. The interactive installation will capture images of audience members on each runway; live posting them onto a 5.8 metre by 3.2 metre multicolour screen. The work invites Melburnians and visitors alike to walk the coloured grass runway, strike a pose and be captured in a bright maze of colour. Participants in the work will each receive a link to their images to share their experience with others. Tine's intention for Colour Me Beautiful is to exemplify and extend the play inherent in human connection through social sharing.

Transforming both the environment and human behaviour through the creative possibilities of play making, Colour Me Beautiful will transform the open air QV Square into an interactive digital art playground.

Tine Bech's artistic vision is to explore how culture, technology and play intersect to shape the future of our cities.

'I believe cities need creative collaborative spaces, in unexpected places, that inspire participation and communication. What we are doing at QV Melbourne is exactly that," says Tine.

Light / Play will also feature a range of Melbourne art and culture happenings in a new converted shipping container in the QV Square, and throughout QV's laneways.

'We are excited to launch our new Laneway Series in Melbourne. The eclectic program of events will provide diverse opportunities for play, thought provoking activities, surprising visual treats and exciting entertainment for city visitors and residents," says Lisa Fleming, QV Melbourne's Regional Centre Manager.

Worlds apart from other retail precincts in Melbourne, QV represents the quintessential Melbourne lifestyle. Intimate laneways in the urban precinct give visitors the freedom to wander and discover the eclectic mix of shops, cafes and restaurants at their own pace. Located on the corner of Lonsdale and Swanston Streets, QV has something for everyone with boutiques, enlightening entertainment and cosmopolitan bars and restaurants.