Augmented reality art installation at the Opera House

Snapchat has launched augmented reality art installations around the World, including a giant Popeye at the Opera House.

The installations are all Jeff Koons works at the moment, although other artists can apply to be included in the future.

To find Koons’ work, you’ll need the latest Snapchat app update and be within 300m of the location. Then tap the camera screen to bring up the Lens carousel and you should see the installation; they’re apparently three stories tall in the virtual world and so hard to miss.

This is not a bad way to showcase augmented reality, and it very much does no one any harm. In the real world sticking an inflated cartoon character in front of the Opera House might well raise some hackles: in the virtual world it’s only intruding upon those who chose to see it.

But, that said, if it’s not really there – is it really art?