In this podcast you will learn how Georgie Pinn designs interactive media artworks for public space. You’ll hear how Georgie builds participation, accessibility, and emotional impact. This interview is part of our series that focuses on media artworks in public space. In this interview, Georgie Pinn explores the creative process behind Echo, an interactive work that has evolved across multiple public-facing iterations, from an intimate one-on-one booth experience to large-scale outdoor presentation.

Georgie describes Echo as an "empathy engine." It is a guided encounter where a stranger’s story is experienced through a face transformation that gradually becomes your own. We discuss the changes when a deeply personal work is placed into public space. This includes designing for walk-up participation, making interaction intuitive across ages, and shaping narrative for unpredictable audiences.

Listen to this podcast to learn how to:

• Design interactive work for public space that supports multiple entry points and non-linear viewing.

• Create walk-up engagement so audiences understand what to do within seconds.

• Prototype with unfamiliar participants to refine UI, affordances, and accessibility across ages.

• Build for touring, with portability and repeatable installation and operation.

Chapters

(00:00:00) Introduction

(00:00:47) Public space origins

(00:02:40) Echo empathy booth

(00:04:47) Residency spark

(00:06:44) Education role

(00:07:35) Stories and archive

(00:09:53) Consent and ethics

(00:11:52) Breaking echo chambers

(00:14:16) New iterations ahead

(00:16:26) Prototyping process

(00:18:50) Collaboration roles

(00:20:53) Creative collective

(00:22:26) Current projects

(00:23:55) Advice for artists

(00:26:54) Closing

About Georgie Pinn

Georgie Pinn is an interactive creative technologist who makes large-scale multi-sensory experiences using projection mapping and interactive, generative, and sound responsive animation. She has over two decades of experience across public art, festivals, cultural institutions, AR and VR experiences, music videos, and stage-based work. Her practice is informed by an ongoing interest in how immersive technology and intimate storytelling can elicit empathy and connection. Her artwork has been presented internationally, including venues such as the Barbican in London, Drive in Berlin, the Powerhouse in Sydney, and Lusail in Qatar.

Links from the podcast

• Learn more aboutEcho
• Visit Georgie Pinn’swebsite
• Follow Georgie Pinn on Instagram
• Learn more aboutArs Electronica
• Learn more about the World Science Festival