New app provides ultimate guide to 2012 gardens
London 2012 Gardens great way for spectators to explore the event.
A brand new, completely free London 2012 Gardens app and supporting mobile-optimised website has been launched, providing a comprehensive guide to the London 2012 Gardens in the Olympic Park.
The app, commissioned by the Olympic Delivery Authority, is the perfect way for Paralympic spectators to explore the Gardens before an event or, for those not lucky enough to have tickets for the Games, to tour the gardens virtually from home.
These unique Gardens are a testimony to Britain’s long history of exploration and trade, and bring to life the major climatic and cultural zones of the world through a rich planting scheme of both native and exotic plants. In addition they represent a new approach to planting design and biodiversity in urban parks.
Through this app you can:
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Journey through each climatic zone – Europe, North America, Southern Hemisphere and Asia, by exploring the stories behind a variety of rare, international plants
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Listen to exclusive audio interviews with the garden designers describing their inspirations and how the Gardens enhance biodiversity
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Learn how to create your own 2012 Garden
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Send greetings postcards to your friends via email with photos and plant information
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Look at a presentation tracing the design and construction of the Gardens
The app can be downloaded from the Apple Store
Discussions are ongoing with the London Legacy Development Corporation about expanding upon the app so that it can be used as a Park-wide educational tool after the Games.
Phil Askew. ODA and LLDC Project Sponsor for the park, said: ‘This new app is a great way to explore the 2012 Gardens. A huge amount of trouble has been taken to ensure that these Gardens will form a suitably spectacular backdrop for the Games and the permanent Legacy Park and if you download this app you will be able to fully appreciate them.’
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Notes to Editors:
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Commissioned by the Olympic Delivery Authority; designed and implemented by Ralph Appelbaum Associates
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Project consists of a smartphone App optimised for both iPhone and Android devices
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RAA also designed a companion mobile-optimised website, www.2012gardens.co.uk. This is for both promoting the app and for providing information to users without smartphones.
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The App is designed for visitors to the Games to experience and learn about the great diversity of the Gardens, yet it is also a tool for amateur gardeners to user at home for their own gardens.
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It is a multi-use app, with no direct precedents nor anything similar in the market. It is at once an educational resource, a social media portal, and a beautiful navigational tool.
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It contains key information about the four climatic zones within the 2012 Gardens, the plant communities of each zone, and signature plants within each community. Users can “Share” this information via email, Facebook and Twitter, and also dig deeper into more detailed content in the “About” section.
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The App is GPS-enabled, so visitors to the Park will be able to navigate their way across the four climatic zones
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Highlights of the app include:
- Parallax scrolling. This horizontal scroll technique allows users to scroll across the four climatic zones, while layers of plants, grasses and Olympic Park landmark move at different speeds. This design feature represents the layering, depth and horizontality of the exquisite Garden design.
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First-hand interviews with the specialists who designed the 2012 Gardens
- App is Free to download from both Apple and Google Play stores