We were curious about the idea: what does interactive mean in this particular context and what’s the connection between a smart phone and a bunch of literary works? The initiative started out as a MOME (Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest) project – during a series of programmes the students of the university got to know everything about museums, including Petőfi Museum of Literature (also being referred to as PIM) which later on became the partner of smart phone application.
The idea of mixing new wave technology with classic literature is not new. About two weeks ago a very similar smart phone app was introduced in Dublin – the application is based on the Joyce’s Dublin of 1904, and it guides the users through one of the most important novels of the 20th century, Ulysses. The two apps are now head to head with each other and they were developed independently.
So, what’s this whole thing about? Is it about challenging the boundaries between technology and art?
Is it about using literary works to create phone apps? If yes, how can a novel be divided into pieces that fit into the different parts of the city? How can certain parts of the narration of a novel be separated from each other and translated to a smart phone? In the Year of Ottlik, one of his novelettes titled ‘Hajnalok a háztetőn’ was the subject of these questions. PIM charged the MOME Creative Technology Lab and MTA SZTAKI to develope with the app.
How much can someone enjoy an app like this? The answer is simple: very much, very much indeed. At the moment only a trial demo version is available which guides the users from Fővám square through Egyetem square to Kossuth Lajos Street. The narration is so fascinating and engaging that users should not be surprised if they accidentally start giggling on the street right in the middle of the traffic while they are holding their phones.
After downloading the application you should be prepared for a nice walk and for an urban-literary experience. As soon as you launch the app you will see a map from 1936 which was transformed to a GPS compatible navigation system. By the help of the GPS the programme manages to keep track of the users and they will receive the relevant chapters and passages from the novels. During the development there was one very important aspect: the images about the society of the 1930s should be visualized by the users themselves after checking out the additional contents and finding out more about the friendships and loves of the novel. Users should rely on their imagination, not on artificial illustrations. The whole experience will probably take about three hours, at the moment only an hour is available.
Whether you have already read ‘Hajnali háztetők’ or not, you will enjoy this application. The walk and the programme can be stopped at any times, however since it’s a set of sequences that rely on each other it might be a good idea to continue from the point where you last stopped. Hajnali háztetőn is more than just an audiobook, it’s a personal Budapest experience, that you can enjoy over and over again. Well, you should try it at least once. The complete, full version of the application will be available from September. We are really looking forward to it.
The demo is available after downloading the MTA SZTAKI Guide@Hand application. The application runs on iOS and Android as well.
