Interactive touch wall, taking visitors on a digital journey

Published on 10 August 2022

Locals and visitors to Sunraysia can now immerse themselves in our region’s rich history, destinations and attractions from one central location following the launch of the new Mildura Powerhouse Interactive Touch Wall.

Launched at the Mildura Visitor Information and Booking Centre this week, the large digital touch wall is fully interactive, allowing people to touch, move, enlarge and manipulate every image and object on the giant screen.

Each of the interactive items tells a story about our community, whether it’s through visuals or short stories, all accessible with the touch or swipe of a finger.

The touch wall will eventually be relocated to the Powerhouse precinct once it is completed.

Councillor for Economic Development and Tourism Stefano de Pieri said the project would appeal to both locals and visitors.

“This is a fun and innovative way to inspire and connect locals and visitors to the history of our region, and the many features and destinations it offers,” Cr de Pieri said.

“For visitors, it will serve as an immersive source of inspiration and information before they go out and start travelling through our region.

“For locals, it could be just the thing to help them learn more about the place they call home.”

Cr de Pieri said one of the features of the touch wall was the inclusion of artwork from the Christie Centre’s ArtRageUs studio.

“The touch wall features about 10 illustrations from more than 16 ArtRageUs artists, which not only adds a great deal to the visual element and content of the touch wall, but is a great way for us to collaborate with our community,” he said.

ArtRageUs Disability Support Worker Mark Pettet said the touch wall provided a raft of opportunities and benefits for his artists.

“We were really excited when Council approached us to be involved in the touch wall, it’s just a wonderful, inclusive chance to be part of something that can be seen more broadly within the community,” Mr Pettet said.

“Many of the team were very prolific, they were full-on with their designs, and we were overwhelmed by the different illustrations, the different interpretations.

“The line-work was created and from there we were able to get it imported, changed into animation, and then the artists were able to do the water colour work and bring it to light with the beautiful colours and images you see on the screen.”

Mr Pettet said that in addition to letting artists explore their passion, it was also a great social enterprise for ArtRageUs.

“This was a paid job through Council, so that was something that really inspired us as a studio and for the artists, because it gave that sense of inclusiveness,” he said.

“It gave that sense of pride that their work would be seen by the broader community and really something that would be immortalised in that work.

“It’s something that they can go back and tell family, friends, people that they want to bring along, that ‘this is my work’, and they can feel a great sense of pride in what they created.”

The touch wall will be a constantly evolving project, easily and quickly updated with new information and content as needed, ensuring it continues to be relevant.

The community are encouraged to drop-in to the Mildura Visitor Information and Booking Centre to experience the Touch Wall themselves and provide feedback.

This project was funded by the Australian Government under the Murray–Darling Basin Economic Development Program.

ENDS