The Brighton Starlings: Rhythm, Migration, and Commuters
An Interactive Augmented Reality Map & Public Art Experience in Brighton
About the Project
The Brighton Starlings project is an interactive, location-based augmented reality (AR) experience that reimagines the city of Brighton through the daily lives of its famous avian residents.
While thousands of human commuters flow in and out of the city at predictable morning and evening hours, local and migratory starlings maintain an entirely different—yet parallel—daily rhythm across different parts of town. This project invites the public to step out of their routine paths and explore Brighton through a dynamic lens, uncovering where the starlings gather, rest, and forage at each distinct point of the day.
The Experience: Avian vs. Human Rhythms
By holding up a smartphone or AR device at specific checkpoints across Brighton, the public is invited into a layered digital landscape.
The Morning Shift: As human commuters rush off trains and buses toward offices at 8:00 AM, the app reveals where the starlings wake, stretch, and begin their foraging loops across the urban canopy and coastline.
The Midday Lull: While the city settles into its workday, the AR simulation maps the starlings' localized feeding patterns in parks, rooftops, and quiet neighborhoods.
The Evening Crescendo: Just as evening commuters head home, the starlings perform their mesmerizing, fluid murmurations. The installation highlights this poetic overlap, contrasting the chaotic grid of human rush hour with the organic, swirling choreography of thousands of birds gathering before roosting.
More than just a map, this piece encourages urban exploration—enlightening locals and visitors to corners of Brighton they might overlook, fostering a deeper connection between human city-dwellers and the natural wildlife sharing their habitat.
Meet the Creator
Ant Fox, Animator & AR Artist
Based in Brighton, UK, Ant Fox creates original artwork from a seafront gallery where visitors can watch the creative process unfold in real time. Blending traditional storytelling with augmented reality, Ant's work invites viewers to experience familiar scenes in new and unexpected ways, focusing on visually engaging installations that connect communities to their local environment without overcomplication.