Evaluation of my recent VR galleries

Out of the two VR galleries I am looking at today, it is exp6Q that proves to be the most interesting when compared to a classic white cube gallery. The other VR gallery, exp8Q, is more conventional and does raise some interesting issues that don't solely apply to VR.

EXP6Q

I designed this gallery to utilise features unique to VR. In this case, the teleport. The gallery built on a vertical axis and the artworks are viewed from a series of platforms accessed individually via teleport.

Most of my galleries have been exploring scale and the relationship between the gallery, artwork and viewer, usually based around very large spaces and large artworks. This is mainly because I do not have access to very large spaces outside of VR, so I have been ignoring the smaller, more normal scaled spaces usually associated with everyday life. However, in this simulation I have exhibited the artworks at a more normal size.

The restrictive nature of the walkways encourage the viewer to move in close to the artworks and the scale of the works are not so important. The viewing experience is quite intimate, even though the wider dark surrounding emptiness is possibly overwhelming or oppressive (I am undecided).

This gallery could potentially be a restrictive experience. But is not! The platforms and ledges encourages the viewer to consider and negotiate the path they take through the gallery, and they can do this at their will. It does raise the question as to whether large open exhibition spaces are the best for visitor experience, as they can be left without a clear path to follow. Indeed, gallery EXP8Q, exemplifies this difference. Gaston Bachelard's intimate immensity comes to mind in this instance and well describes this simulation.

This gallery highlights the relationship between the viewer and the space, the viewer and the artworks and the relationship between the space and the work - This gallery is not a container and I need to have a careful think about what it actually is!

I am not sure whether it completely works as a gallery, as negotiating it is not particularly intuitive and it certainly does not make sense with the exhibited photographs. Perhaps it would work better if it was part of a conceptual piece or series of artworks that connect to, or reflect the viewing experience.

EXP8Q

I tried to imbue a sense of weight and space in this gallery.  I wanted the visitor to feel the weight of the building surrounding them. I tried to include different spaces for different sized artworks and I wanted the works to be the brightest objects in there so spot-lit them and coloured the walls and floors a mid grey. I also dictated the starting point which sited the visitor in the middle of the gallery, under the claustrophobic hanging wall, and able to see into most parts of the space.

The first thing that hits you is the darkness, it is oppressive, but the spotlit artworks to stand out very well. One does feel a little bit lost in the larger spaces but the artworks are also very large. However, they are possibly too large as the viewers attention tends to be centred on the lower part of the photographs. This would not be a problem if the photograph read from bottom up, but not all images follow this aesthetic. Of course, this is something that translates to real life and it seems that there certainly is a maximum size for this style of artwork within a gallery.

The overhung walls in the centre corridor work well as exhibition walls for smaller artworks, however the other sides (of the same wall) does not because they interfere or are interfered by the works displayed on the main (dominating) walls in that room.

I think this space works quite well. I like the darkness and contrast of the gallery length skylight. The spot-lit artworks are well presented and I like the differentiation of sizes. However, as mentioned above, one feels a little lost in the larger spaces and I need to think about trying to add a sense of direction. In the past, and in real life, I have managed to use the careful placement of artworks to pull the visitor around an exhibition, but the vastness of this space and the hanging wall have removed the ability for me to do that...

I am currently moving the VR project into it's own office. Very exciting! and it will be interesting to see how this affects my future designs and direction.

  

If you are reading this blog and feel you can add something to my research then please comment… even if you are correcting me or don’t agree with something that I say.