ART GALLERY VIRTUAL TOUR

Next big thing to seeing art in person. An emerging new venture, virtual tour of Art Gallery. Popular museums and galleries have already started a new form of connecting to space remotely. Documenting art, with the new form of 360-degree video captures of Art and Space. Not just a tool for viewing, but used to interact with. In the form of learning about the art, or even the artist in some cases. Whether it is a 3D recreation or simply a Virtual Reality (VR) video capture of the art, it allows art to be more accessible to everyone. Not just for museums and popular art, is virtual tour a game changer for new artists? Still, a fairly new concept. Today, more industries are leaning towards VR as a solution for marketing and accessibility. It has been advancing in multimedia, gaming, healthcare, therapy, art, education, research, marketing, archaeology, etc. This might be the new way to sell, and reach more audiences online. Similar to displaying your art on a website as a still image, VR could enhance and create a more immersive experience for your audience.

SUMMARY ART GALLERY SOLUTIONS TYPES OF VR HEADSETS VR EXPERIENCE/DISPLAY 1. Combination of 3D Modelling & Still images. 2. 360-degree Video Capture. 3. 360-degree Image Stitching/Mapping. VR headset can be categorized into three different groups. One type of head mounted display (HMD) connected to PC allows consumers to have a full-immersive experience. Another type of HMD is where the application is attached to a smartphone. And the third type of HMD is the cost-efficient handheld solutions. There are a few options to display and experience virtual tours. Whether it 's through virtual reality devices or a browser. WebVR allows you to experience virtual reality through a web-based browser.

WHAT IS VIRTUAL REALITY?

What is VR? Virtual Reality is a computer-simulated reality that places the physical presence in a computer generated environment. This immersive experience allows users to interact with features, and look around the virtual world. How does it work? By using a virtual reality headset (Oculus Rift, HTC VIVE, Google Cardboard, etc.), the user is placed into a computer simulated world.

ART GALLERY SOLUTIONS:

1: Combination of 3D Modelling & Still images Three Dimensional (3D) Modeling is commonly used to visualize ideas or to reconstruct space or objects in the physical realm with the aid of 3D Modeling Softwares. Today, there are numerous 3D Softwares with impressive features and tools. For example, Autodesk Maya is widely used in VR Industries and VR related education. While Blender, open-source 3D modeling software. Highly recommended for beginners and enthusiasts to get a glimpse into the 3D world. However, it is not easy to use these software as it requires extensive knowledge in 3D space and practice. One might say the only limitation is your imagination and perhaps your budget. 3D modeling is essentially useful for setting up your virtual art gallery. For instance, if you do not have an art gallery space. It is a cost effective way to create a gallery space to display your artwork. Note, the idea is not to reconstruct the art, but the space in which the art resides in. Once the space is created, your artwork can be captured in still images, and displayed as it would be in a gallery using a real-time development platform like UNITY. 2: 360-degree Video Capture 360 degree video capture is essentially useful if you have an existing gallery that displays your art. You'll need to video capture your gallery using a 360-degree camera. One of the advantages of video captures is that it allows you to capture the space as it is. There are a variety of 360-degree cameras. Check out Insta360 Pro Spherical VR 360 8K Camera by B&H to capture 360 videos or photos. Or a more compact version such as the Insta360 Nano camera that can be attached to an iPhone. Video capturing creates an immersive experience allowing you to experience the space in a natural setting. 3: 360-degree Image Stitching/Mapping For a 'static' virtual tour, you can use still images. Similar to 360-degree video capture, you can also use a 360-degree camera to capture the images of the space to create the virtual tour. This technique also works with a regular camera, however, you need multiple static overlapping images of the space to create a seamless 360-degree VR display. Additionally, you will need a developer/special software to stitch the images together. Create your virtual tour using Tour Creator by uploading your images and converting them into a virtual tour. You might also want to check out Artsteps, where you can set up your virtual art gallery.

UNITY, real-time development platform. Insta360 Pro Spherical VR 360 8K Camera by B&H Insta360 Nano

TYPES OF VR HEADSETS:

VR headset can be categorized into three different groups. One type of head mounted display (HMD) connected to PC allows consumers to have a full-immersive experience. Another type of HMD is where the application is attached to a smartphone. And the third type of HMD is the cost-efficient handheld solutions. Each group provides a different experience, and the quality of immersive experiences varies. Handheld VR Kit is an affordable option. A classic example is the Google Cardboard launched by Google. Which is an open source platform that allows users to design applications using googles' available specification. With a limited level of freedom, google cardboard uses simple gyro control, and a single click option for interaction accessing menu. On the other hand, smartphone headsets are advanced compared to handheld HMD. A known example of smartphone headset is GearVR by Samsung. These headsets have adjustable straps attached to the headsets, and are able to connect to game controllers. Ordinarily, these devices have a secure housing for smartphones. Other examples of HMD are The Zeiss VR One, Freefly, Noon VR, Homido, and Archos. Each of these headsets have their advantages and disadvantages, finding the right headset for your smartphone is the key as not all HMD are compatible with all smartphones. Finally the HMD that is attached to the PC, known for its intriguing immersive experience. These devices are far more expensive compared to handheld, and smartphone headsets. An example is Oculus Rift which offers a high fidelity graphics tracking position, has a combination of gyros and IR camera, and interactive controllers. Other examples of HMD are HTC Vive, FOVE, OSVR, Sulon Cortex, and StartVR.

Google Cardboard launched by Google. GearVR by Samsung

VR EXPERIENCE/DISPLAY

Today, VR can be seamlessly embedded on a website. There are a few options to display and experience virtual tours. Whether it 's through virtual reality devices or a browser. WebVR allows you to experience virtual reality through a web-based browser. It is compatible with most VR headsets, however, without a VR headset you can still see a 360-degree view of the space. Also, it is not compatible with all web browsers, and restrictions may apply. It is recommended to have a VR headset to have a full-on experience but not necessary. Which makes it more accessible for everyone to experience VR. Compared to other developer platforms, A-Frame allows you to create WebVR with HTML and Entity-Component, compatible with Vive, Rift, desktop, and mobile platforms.

A-Frame for WebVR

OUTCOME

Perhaps a question for the modern world, is VR a sustainable practice? It is highly debatable, but based on how it is implemented and executed, it can be sustainable. Whether it's a virtual art gallery tour or anything from real estate to travel industry, it most certainly re-shapes and creates new experiences. The long-term usages effect on health and safety is still unknown and yet to be explored. Factors such as disorienting users in virtual environments, and VR motion sickness are concerns to be addressed. These advanced technologies are becoming user centered, designed to accommodate user needs, and wants. Researchers and companies are interested in learning the human body. Designing applications ranging from using bio-feedback to alter the virtual environment to extract brainwaves to define, and classify emotions. The future of these advanced technologies are unknown, however it is becoming seamlessly integrated into our life sooner than it may appear. For more information on different types of emerging technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality. Check out our article on VR vs. AR vs. MR.

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