Immersive Experience

In the market since 2011, omnidirectional cameras are undoubtedly one of the finest creations we have today. While the earlier ones only captured panoramic images, modern ones are able to capture panoramic videos using multiple cameras. The videos captured by these cameras have allowed the creation of interesting pieces of art, educational videos and travel documentaries.

Artists have now become interested in experimenting with immersive animations, creating installation art that is either interactive or experiential and sometimes, both. I came across some very interesting immersive videos during my research which in turn, inspired me to experiment with the medium.

The Fake Factory:Immersive Mirror Room (https://vimeo.com/284354179) by Italian video designer, Stefano Fake is one of the most detailed works of immersive video/animation that I have ever seen. It involves a room with mirror walls. A video, in which there is no sense of inside, outside or a flat plane, is projected onto those walls and reflected onto others. Thus, the person who enters the room is unable to experience a space where human mind does not register the surroundings and walking, sitting or standing becomes largely confusing, allowing the experience of alternate realities.

Another highly interesting work of immersive art is Self on Shelf by Laia Cabrera and Isabelle Duverger, curated by Christine Miele at the Spring/Break Art Show 2018, New York. The video can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1c-66TN1zo.  Inspired by children’s picture book ‘Self on Shelf’, the video was installed inside a space designed like a children’s bedroom. As the visitors enter the bedroom, the video responds to various clues and events, creating a variety of graphics all around the room.

While this is just my initial research into omnidirectional cameras, panoramic videography and immersive videos and animations, my understanding of the subject has been aided by the relevant works that I saw. Immersive videos and animations are an excellent medium when it comes to the creation of educational material. With a 360^o view of any space, explanations becomes a lot easier with the learner able to control the direction as the flat screens of mobile phones, tablets and computers allow for a limited view.

Travel documentaries have shown the most beautiful use of omnidirectional cameras as they have allowed travel bloggers and TV channels to lessen the difference between virtuality and reality of a space. Perhaps, these videos and documentaries are a step forward in the subject of augmented reality.

Installation art has moved ahead of photographic and/or sculptural form with the usage of immersive videos and animations. Experiential and/or interactive, immersive installation art has provided artists and video designers, an ability to give out messages with a sense of feel along with seeing. Introduction of other senses such as smelling, hearing and tasting can make up for even more enthralling experiences.

All of this makes immersive video and animation a great discovery in the worlds of art and science. The field surely has a lot more room for exploration and development. As for my study of the subject, I am looking to grasp it even better with deeper research and understanding.

Bibliography

THE FAKE FACTORY

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_omnidirectional_cameras

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/360-degree_videohttps://otherworldohio.com

Art and Mental Health

Art theory has long been used as a means to treat various psychological issues such as depression. Various forms of art such as poetry, drama, dance and music have been experimented with for the treatment of depression. Creative arts have been one of the best friends of many artists who have lived a depressed life such as Vincent van Gogh, even though the cause of his death was suicide due to depression. Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama however, is a living example of an artist who healed her suicidal depression through art therapy. In recent years, art therapy, like all other subjects, has developed immensely. Artists today are experimenting with various methodologies within art therapy other than the traditional ways of drawing and painting.

A work worth mentioning here is Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirror, an immersive installation using the play of reflection and light in an enclosed space. Kusama first created an immersive installation of this theme in 1963 and has, since then, been creating a series for it. The last of her Infinity Mirror works was seen in 2017 when Kusama opened a traveling exhibition dedicated to her works from the past 50 years at Hirshhorn Museum in Washington D.C. The Infinity Mirror series comprises of rooms made out of mirrored walls and tactfully done with paint, sculptures or other techniques. Some of the most well-known of these rooms include the one that has been painted in her classic polka dot pattern and another that is decorated with glowing sculptures. The placement of the paint, sculpture, animation or whatever technique she uses is critical here. When it reflects onto all other mirrors in that room, certain ambiance is created which according to Yayoi Kusama, proved healing for her.

While Kusama creates her mirror rooms at the exhibition venues, Indian artist Vishal Kumar Dar uses abandoned sites that have been neglected. According to him, these sites have the power to change a person and he thus, find it very therapeutic to be working in or around them. For the 2016 Shanghai Biennale, Dar used a 165-m high chimney to create his installation titled Storm Deities. The chimney was once part of a thermal power station. Inside the chimney, Dar placed high powered sky lights, controlled through a software to move in varying patterns and sometimes, in similar ones. This dance of lights, according to Dar, and the ephemerality of all immersive installations, are an experience for the viewer and not something a buyer picks up and leaves.     

Researchers have categorized immersive art under the category of virtual reality (VR) as immersive installations are not just creative visual display playing with light, sound and space, but are essentially experiential. According to professionals, art therapy involves creative formulae for a patient to express their thoughts and see other artists’ works in order to explore their emotions which in turn, leads to a more stable mind. Nonetheless, it is not the practice of making art alone that helps the process. Line, shape, value, texture and colour play a vital role here as they are not only vital elements that make up an art but also invoke certain thoughts in a person’s mind and their correct usage makes an artist more satisfied in terms of expressing his/her emption. For immersive installations, form, space and lighting play an equally important part in connecting with and healing the artist.

Since immersive installations are more experiential, it is not doubt that they might have more healing powers than traditional art making. However, only further research, experience and study will show how helpful immersive art and the play of light and space is for healing depression.              

Bibliography

https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-art-therapy-2795755

Art Therapy For Depression: Seeing The Light Through Creativity

https://www.staffordholisticcounseling.com/journal/2018/10/1/the-immersive-art-of-yayoi-kusama-and-her-recovery-from-suicidal-depression-with-art-therapy

Using Art Therapy to Create Freedom From Depression

https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/CZZOflA33cYx40Cb6EReuN/Immersion-therapy-adventures-in-interactive-art.html

Immersive experience —example 4

An immersive experience can be classified as an involvement that engages an impulsive personal experience by capturing an altered state of mind and presence. The experience involves engaging the audience through triggering memories and activating senses in comparison to using a product item or service. It can be noted that an immersive experience involves several interactive concepts to engage the spectators in comparison to a formatted exhibition or gallery.

 Concepts in an immersive experience include: an emotional engagement, essence of time and place, storytelling whilst using immersive technologies to create the ambience. An immersive experience is the 360 Dome Experience which draws together music, vibrations and 360-degree projection screen display. This enhances the viewer experience as this looks like real. The video which I saw made me look everything real and after watching it my mind was pretty much relaxed the view of everything with some meanings in it made it look fantastic. Here are some pictures of this beautiful art.

YouTube. (2020). Vincent van Gogh art ALIVE – Atelier des Lumiere’s (Paris, France) STARRY NIGHT. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbgrHnbgoDU [Accessed 5 Feb. 2020].

SAGE Journals. (2020). Exploring immersive experience in journalism – Donghee Shin, Frank Biocca, 2018. [online] Available at: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1461444817733133?casa_token=Gnr7N7lfb98AAAAA%3AvdbkPtiLbn1ttLF53cAqZXbwgQkBolyiWs1iq44Bsb9aCNr6LOPqOon4YTe0lPU4S_ykWcz-jqyb [Accessed 5 Feb. 2020]. 

My take on immersive arts

When the interdisciplinary project was first introduced I was instantly ignited with ideas, but within all of those, one stood out, because I recalled a certain content creator on the late social named Vine, There was a user by the name of Brittlestar who changed the game on how we watched the videos posted on the website, he would ask the viewer to make a repetitive movement of the finger, hovering the screen, and then inserting certain clips with effects that look as if we were the ones causing it.

Put Your Finger On The Screen Compilation. (2015). Directed by S. Reynolds. YouTube.

Holding this idea into mind, I was really keen on producing something similar for our group’s project, where the viewers could be surrounded by interactions to make them feel even more immersed inside the dome, because in my opinion, one thing is to listen and to see a video in a 360-degree view, but to actually be a part of it in a certain level would make the experience come to life.

The group as a whole decided not to follow with that idea, which was not a problem for me, because at the end of the day, I understand that this is a team effort and not a project for one person to demand whatever they wish for, so collectively, we decided to make something that everyone could agree on.

Dealing with new software

As every human knows, we were not born already with knowledge embedded in our heads, it is sought out and given to us, so when we tackle these types of specific projects that would require us to learn new forms of working and utilising different tools, such as Adobe After Effects, a very specific piece of software that is not normally used just by anyone, it is application that leans more towards visual effects and motion graphics.

Our group’s animator and I had already stumbled upon this program in our past, and even so it was an imposing challenge for myself, so I could only imagine the frustration in learning such a tool for the first time, especially when we would have to use it in a very specific manner. So with that information at hand, the only logical step to take is to simple task that usage of the program to the ones most experienced in it, so that time and effort is saved, therefor allowing others to focus on a different area with a more relaxed mind, this was the exact case in our project, where we really try to listen to each other, to really find every one of our strong points, and use that to throttle the progress.

Video 3 Production Progress

Reference:
Baraz, A. Galimatias. (2015) Fantasy [Online]. Dance & electronic music. https://y.qq.com/n/yqq/song/003xoGV80QLoyP.html (Accessed 2 February 2020)

Working with others.

Throughout most of our lives we are taught how to be self-sufficient and independent, but rarely do we get offered the chance to work as a group in a professional manner, so as many would agree, we have to become more adaptive to change around us.
When working with other people, we always have to put our differences aside and unite to achieve the same goal, in this case which what we are experiencing, producing an interesting 360-degree video, some of us did not process much knowledge on the subject at hand, but instead of dwelling on those issues, we use adaptive thinking and strategy to change the entire process so that everyone can be a part of its making.

If we humans are unable or refuse to alter our way of thinking and acting when trying to achieve the same objective, we are simply denying our evolutionary heritage, from once we came from nothing, acting solely on instinct, we’ve grown to build entire civilisations based around the social interactions and necessity of each other, and it is with this knowledge that we have to keep in mind when working on such assignments, because turning the entire operation in a manner to best help the group as a collection of beings, and not simply for the advantage of one or two members, we can surely achieve a much better result, and that is exactly what I was reminded of during this project, when the entire group was together we talked about our issues and the visions that we saw for the finale, and whilst expressing and receiving opinions from everyone, we managed to find a middle term where everyone managed to find a smile on their face and to be excited to work.

Immersive Experience—Example 3

JUN IGARASHI ARCHITECTS

PLAYHOUSE FOR OSAKA CONTEMPORARY THEATER FESTIVAL. JAPAN

DESIGNER JUN IGARASHI, Architect Project, Location Japan – OSAKA in 2005,

PHOTOS BY SHINKENCHIKU-SHA

DIVISARE ( 2016 ), JUN IGARASHI ARCHITECTS PLAYHOUSE FOR OSAKA CONTEMPORARY THEATER FESTIVAL. JAPAN, Retrited at 30-1-2020, from: https://divisare.com/projects/311733-jun-igarashi-architects-shinkenchiku-sha-playhouse-for-osaka-contemporary-theater-festival-japan

Immersive Experience— Example 2

Jamie Lidell Controls A Stunning Projection Mapped Cube Using A Mic Stand .

Lidell wore a reflective mackintosh, used a glowing MAC controlled the cube, and moved it in the direction corresponding to the visual effect, so it was like a giant joystick for this projection mapping feast. Also, because it looks so good, this reactive structure is not only going to be in the music video, it’s going to be touring with him. So you can witness the glory of this colorful cage.

The installation USES real-time projection graphics, which are inspired by dazzling patterns, optical illusions and neon disco lights.They are controlled by glowing motion-control microphones and stands and mapped to different bands of the spectrum, creating a good reaction environment.

Kevin Holmes ( 2013 ), Jamie Lidell Controls A Stunning Projection Mapped Cube Using A Mic Stand . Retrieved Feb 5,2020, from:http://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/8qmjm3/jamie-lidell-controls-a-stunning-projection-mapped-cube-using-a-mic-stand

Video 2 Production Progress