Echo of the City
Seeing the past in the present through AR
Echo of the City is an augmented reality experience that reveals the city’s lost and transformed architecture at its original locations. Blending urban exploration with historical storytelling, it invites New Yorkers and visitors to rediscover the architectural memory hidden beneath the modern city and bring awareness to the lost history.
Initial Mess Map
Stakeholders Map
Intended Audience
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General tourists and visitors, including individuals, families, guided groups, school groups, and casual passersby.
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Historians, museums, and local historical societies
Goals
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Make invisible history visible on the real site
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Bring awareness of cultural loss and transformation
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Encourage preservation awareness without physical rebuilding costs
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Teach architectural history through interactions
Design Research
Competitor Analysis #1 - Urban Archive
Pros:
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Main function: Detailed archive of historical architecture pictures based on map locations
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Personal archive: Allow users to save interesting locations for future revisit
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Historical stories: fun facts behind photos
Cons:
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Only image archives, lack of content, and not heavily involvedin the real location of the user
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Hard to navigate through the timeline of one location
Competitor Analysis #2 - Portyl
Pros:
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Real-time location-based AR filter revealing historical structures
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Clear site indications on the map
Cons:
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Limited location
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Credit limitation
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No other information was provided besides the AR filter
Site Choice
The site selection was narrowed based on spatial scale and the anticipated complexity of the AR application, including factors such as the number of buildings and the level of structural detail required.
Site Research - History
1903
One Times Square was completed in 1904 and immediately became the second-tallest building in Manhattan. The 25-storey skyscraper originally served as the headquarters of The New York Times newspaper, after which Times Square itself was named. The New York Times moved its editorial office into the new building a year after its completion, and the opening ceremony was celebrated with an impressive fireworks display at midnight on 1 January 1905. This tradition has evolved over time into an annual New Year’s Day celebration with the famous lowering of the ball.
In 1913, just a few years after the move, The New York Times left One Times Square and moved to new premises.
In 1963, the building was sold to Allied Chemical, which extensively modified its façade, replacing the original ornate granite and terracotta elements with marble and concrete. Most of the building’s facades were given a simple form, while the interiors on the upper floors were left empty due to the high cost of refurbishment. It was soon noticed that the building was generating more revenue from advertising than from renting office space, which determined its future character.
1960s
2000s
Now
In the late 1990s, giant LED screens were installed on the building’s façade and have become the new symbol of Times Square. In 2008, Walgreens installed the world’s largest light-emitting diode billboard.
Today, One Times Square, although largely unused as an office building, is one of the most important landmarks on the map of New York. Its role as a giant advertising billboard and the site of the annual New Year’s celebrations make it one of the most recognizable buildings in the world.
Samsung completed a massive state-of-the-art five-screen LED display installation at the iconic One Times Square building in New York City. The new high-end displays from Samsung measure more than 11,639 square feet when combined.
Samsung’s new displays at One Times Square take up the entire front-facing panel and reflect some of the most valuable advertising displays in the world. The displays feature premium center-stage exposure with full motion video, live-streaming, and interactive capabilities.
Real Site Observing
Wireframe
Key features:
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Interactive map view highlighting historical site hotspots
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Detailed site descriptions with historical and architectural context
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AR-based environmental scanning with location anchoring activation
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Interactive hotspots providing in-depth information on architectural elements
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Experience sharing to promote awareness and engagement
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Ability to save favorite locations and build a personal archive
Building AR Experience
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Developing three distinct 3D assets to represent the three historical phases of One Times Square.
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GLB export with optimized polycount​
2000s
1960s
1900s
Settle location anchors
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WebAR implemented using 8th Wall
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Utilization of the Geospatial Browser to activate the Visual Positioning System (VPS)
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Map-based scaling to accurately align 3D assets with location anchors
Hi-fi Prototype
​App Prototype
AR Demo
