Big Data - Changing Place
Big Data - Changing Place
DURATION
18 month exhibition
DURATION
18 month exhibition
CLIENT
National Library of New Zealand
CLIENT
National Library of New Zealand
Strategic Foresight
Strategic Foresight
Educational
Educational
Digital Engineering
Digital Engineering
Regulatory Insight
Regulatory Insight
PROJECT OVERVIEW
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Meta Moto led the curation and conceptual design of Big Data: Changing Place, a significant exhibition at the National Library of New Zealand. Through indigenous collaborations, scientific and engineering datasets, and creative technologies, the project transformed the Library into a civic platform for digital storytelling, connecting spatial data, public memory, and future-oriented cultural dialogue.
Meta Moto led the curation and conceptual design of Big Data: Changing Place, a significant exhibition at the National Library of New Zealand. Through indigenous collaborations, scientific and engineering datasets, and creative technologies, the project transformed the Library into a civic platform for digital storytelling, connecting spatial data, public memory, and future-oriented cultural dialogue.
The Challenge
The Challenge
The National Library’s reopening called for a visionary approach to redefine its place in the digital era. Challenges involved integrating diverse data, including satellite, seismic, historical, societal, and cultural place-making stories, and making complex ideas understandable to various audiences. It required not just technology, but also education, clear thinking, and a new civic storytelling framework.
The National Library’s reopening called for a visionary approach to redefine its place in the digital era. Challenges involved integrating diverse data, including satellite, seismic, historical, societal, and cultural place-making stories, and making complex ideas understandable to various audiences. It required not just technology, but also education, clear thinking, and a new civic storytelling framework.
WHAT WE DID
WHAT WE DID
Meta Moto shaped the exhibition’s intellectual journey, blending perception, synthesis, and storytelling. We curated 3D spatial models across different timeframes, integrated LiDAR and nanoscale data, and commissioned artworks to illustrate abstract themes. Cross-agency data federation, iwi collaboration, and public programs positioned the Library as a national leader in digital cultural expression.
Meta Moto shaped the exhibition’s intellectual journey, blending perception, synthesis, and storytelling. We curated 3D spatial models across different timeframes, integrated LiDAR and nanoscale data, and commissioned artworks to illustrate abstract themes. Cross-agency data federation, iwi collaboration, and public programs positioned the Library as a national leader in digital cultural expression.
Meta Moto brings places to life through digital storytelling by bridging the arts, sciences, and technology to reveal the deep stories that shape our environments. As curator of the landmark Big Data-Changing Place exhibition for New Zealand’s National Library, Meta Moto's Richard Simpson delivered immersive experiences that reconnected visitors with the hidden streams and histories beneath Wellington, many long since lost to urban development.
The exhibition was officially opened by the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Hon. John Key. Its educational programmes and public forums, hosted by the Royal Society and broadcast nationwide, sparked dialogue across generations and disciplines. The exhibition’s remarkable impact led to its extension by a further six months. Through this work, we demonstrated how place-making flourishes when the invisible becomes visible and the intangible becomes tangible, artfully weaving data, memory, and imagination into shared understanding.
Meta Moto’s approach reveals the hidden layers of every place, enabling organisations to engage communities, deepen understanding, and inspire action. By bringing together technology, memory, and imagination, we ensure that each story of place is not only remembered but experienced, inviting collaboration and new possibilities for the future.
Meta Moto brings places to life through digital storytelling by bridging the arts, sciences, and technology to reveal the deep stories that shape our environments. As curator of the landmark Big Data-Changing Place exhibition for New Zealand’s National Library, Meta Moto's Richard Simpson delivered immersive experiences that reconnected visitors with the hidden streams and histories beneath Wellington, many long since lost to urban development.
The exhibition was officially opened by the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Hon. John Key. Its educational programmes and public forums, hosted by the Royal Society and broadcast nationwide, sparked dialogue across generations and disciplines. The exhibition’s remarkable impact led to its extension by a further six months. Through this work, we demonstrated how place-making flourishes when the invisible becomes visible and the intangible becomes tangible, artfully weaving data, memory, and imagination into shared understanding.
Meta Moto’s approach reveals the hidden layers of every place, enabling organisations to engage communities, deepen understanding, and inspire action. By bringing together technology, memory, and imagination, we ensure that each story of place is not only remembered but experienced, inviting collaboration and new possibilities for the future.
