News
24 January 2023
Combining art and immersive technology for people to interact with culture and unleash creativity? This is what Artcast4D, a European consortium of research, technology, culture, and media partners is developing, working with artists, cultural organisations, creative businesses, museums, city, and local authorities to develop new, immersive experiences in public spaces.
“What does the term ‘immersion’ mean? Does it mean ‘emotionally involved’ ‘blurring reality with virtuality’? There are different experiences that can be labelled ‘immersive’: reading a book, watching a movie, attending a concert or opera, experiencing wild nature, spiritual experiences and more. The ability to feel ‘immersed’ differs from person to person,” according to Professor Alfredo Ronchi, scientific coordinator of the Artcast4D project and active in the interactive virtual reality field since the 1980s.
“The project’s innovation lies in its ability to create immersive environments in open spaces, with minimally intrusive projection technology, through the design of collective interactive applications for broad and varied audiences,” explained Daniel Schutze, founder of interactive installations partner MDLite.
The Artcast4D project will publish an open-source program using, refining, and extending the proven AAASeed real-time 2D/3D software.
“Piloting the application with creative users in living lab settings will make the latest immersive technology usable and accessible to the creative and cultural sector,” added Mâa Berriet, designer and developer of AAASeed.
Artcast4D will implement 4 pilots with different cultural and creative topics and experiences: Citizens Engagement, Art in Public Spaces, Innovation in Art and Experience, Wisdom Tourism, bringing together creative actors and industrial partners with civil society.
Pilots will include training workshops, and open training modules designed for developers and artists. They will also help to derive policy guidelines on how to strengthen competitiveness and innovation in Europe.
“Advances in immersive technologies represent an important driver for the experience economy, enhancing breadth, depth and intensity of artistic performances and visitors’ experiences in public areas and at arts and cultural institutions,” said Xavier Maître, leading the research study on the triggers for immersion in open spaces by Université Paris-Saclay.
Moreover, the project will showcase the potential of immersive experiences to boost Cultural Creative Industries by integrating from the outset online impact assessment and measurement techniques developed by digital research partner IFAAR.
Artcast4D kicked off in Milan in September 2022. The consortium will carry out research and development, pilots and living lab demonstrations, communication and dissemination of findings and recommendations over 36 months.
Consortium partners:
The consortium is coordinated by Politecnico di Milano and brings together 10 partners from 7 European Countries, merging research, technology, creative, media and cultural backgrounds.
Pilot partners include: Issy-les-Moulineaux municipality, France; Watermans, an arts centre in London, UK; cultural consultancy CulturaLink in collaboration with regional associated partner Espai LaGranja – IVC, in Valencia, Spain; and CERTH research centre with technology partner EXUS AI Labs in Athens, Greece.
CERTH (GR)
CulturaLink (ES)
EXUS AI Labs (GR)
Fondazione/Politecnico di Milano (IT)
IFAAR (CH)
IssyMédia (FR)
MDLite(FR)
The Battleground (BE)
Watermans (UK)