Wendall--every other Thursday
Over the last ten years, immersive experiences have become all
the rage. From the Wonderland exhibit in Melbourne in 2017 Don’t just look at the art, be surrounded by huge digital
representations of it, walk through it, see a whole artist’s career as a moving
slideshow. Hurry to The Van Gogh Experience! Or “be” Barbie and enjoy “ your own iconic Barbie-inspired hairstyle done by a Paul
Mitchell Professional!” Then attend The World of Barbie “Sips After
Sunset” (adults only) in her interactive world, in a local mall. This is pure
marketing for the film, of course, but overall, what do these installations
offer us? As of this morning, in addition to The World of Barbie, there
are sixteen “immersive” experiences currently running in Los Angeles. There’s Bubble
World—"an immersive experience designed to challenge the imagination. Step
into a hot air balloon flight simulator, dive into massive ball pits, witness
robot-led bubble shows, and much, much more! ”
There’s The Subterranean Forest. “Stepping into what
feels like a painting, your senses will immediately be activated by instruments
like sound bowls and drums, plus watercolors, games, and so much more. Don’t
miss this immersive installation!”
Dinos
Alive, an “ exhibition featuring life-size animated replicas
in an immersive Jurassic venue. Walk alongside the massive creatures that
roamed our world millions of years ago!” There’s Explore Vatican: Immersive Experience! “Using
cutting-edge technology, allow us to transport you to the heart of Europe,
where you'll encounter a captivating, up-close encounter with the rich history
and art of Vatican City. Prepare to be whisked away on a journey like never
before to the wonders that await, as we bring the Vatican's treasures right to
your doorstep!”
Terrifyingly, there’s also this. “Are you brave enough to
revisit humanity’s dark history at the largest medieval torture museum in the
country? Come explore over 5,000 square feet of exhibits containing hundreds of
examples of torture, punishments, and execution devices. Find out how these
contraptions were used with interactive activities and lifelike, silicon
models (!! bold and exclamation marks mine!) depicting the action. Get your tickets
for the Medieval Torture Museum with Ghost Hunting in Los Angeles!" The interactive Medieval Torture Museum (!) And perhaps, most hilariously, The World of FRIENDS™ —The
One Near Long Beach. The one near Long Beach? How many are there? Inside this
one, “Immerse yourself like never before by exploring interactive set
recreations like Monica and Rachel’s kitchen, reliving the famous PIVOT! scene,
and posing on the iconic orange couch in Central Perk. Plus you’ll get to learn
about the making of the show with props, costumes and so much more! Now that’s what
I call kick-you-in-the-crotch, spit-on-your-neck fantastic!”
Even the Titanic Experience has immersive elements, no pun
intended. Be on the Titanic? So, what do these experiences have in common, besides their
ubiquitous exclamation marks? And what draws so many people to them? Is it just
a natural extension of our armchair culture, and of the growth of virtual
reality technology—a way to travel or participate without traveling or
participating? Is it a need to be part of something bigger than ourselves? Or
is it just, at heart, the need for the best selfies?
And is there a difference between an immersive experience
that takes advantage of art that’s already been created, like The Van Gogh
Experience, and living art, which is an experience in itself, created by an
artist, like James Turrell’s “Breathing Light,” which challenges our perception
of the objects, colors, and distances around us? One of the James Turrell exhibits at MONA in Tasmania In addition to several of Turrell’s installations, both in
the U.S. and in Tasmania, I was lucky enough to walk through Rain Room
at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2015. This piece allowed visitors to
“walk through a downpour without getting wet,” via motion sensors, making them “performers
in this intersection of art, technology and nature.” Rain Room at LACMA I feel that these installations have actually challenged me
and made me look at the world differently. The entrance to the "Alice" exhibit in 2017 On the other hand, Wonderland, a 2017 exhibit at The
Australian Center for the Moving Image, was pure fun. This exhibit had immersive elements, like having to enter by crawling through the
tiny door, or attending the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party while surrounded by shifting
images. James entering the exhibit... Then Alice lets us into the passageway Entering and sitting down at the Tea Party The scene shifts On the other wall... The exhibit also included the history of the depictions of Lewis Carroll’s Alice and the other characters. The Red Queen's costume A room full of photos of Alice on film Perhaps the most hilarious part of the experience was
sitting for a photograph, which was then placed into an animated film of the famous croquet party. Obviously my husband James understood this idea much better than
I, since he was smart enough to make a funny face, while mine is quite dull. A still of our animated adventures I have always loved the Alice
books and actually wrote a script about Humpty Dumpty, so it was certainly
surreal to find myself beside him on a projected wall... Me and my fave, Humpty Dumpty Here's a video of our animated selves, if you have 36 seconds...
In the end, I think my favorite immersive experience is
still a book, but how do you all feel about this trend and what it offers and
perhaps, what it threatens?
-- Wendall
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