{"id":17896,"date":"2019-12-20T08:45:02","date_gmt":"2019-12-20T08:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.museunacional.cat\/?p=17896"},"modified":"2022-09-14T08:04:10","modified_gmt":"2022-09-14T08:04:10","slug":"is-immersion-the-crucial-new-algorithm-for-cultural-experiences","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.museunacional.cat\/en\/is-immersion-the-crucial-new-algorithm-for-cultural-experiences\/","title":{"rendered":"Is immersion the crucial new algorithm for cultural experiences?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Insights from the 4th Cultural Heritage Conference, Barcelona<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Irina Grevtsova<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, the word\n\u201cimmersive\u201d has become fashionable and it is used to describe almost\neverything: living as a local in a tourist destination; bathing beneath\nwaterfalls in a digital cascade; going on stage and interacting with actors;\ntaking selfies in pop-up installations, or solving mysteries in an escape room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immersion is not a new\nconcept. Its origins go deep into the history of humanity, in the stories that\nwere told around the fire, in the religious ceremonies made atmospheric with\nsmoke and light and sound effects, seeking contact with the divine or magical,\nor theatres of terror, which included all sorts of sensory stimulation, from\nsmells and demoniacal or phantasmagorical projections to electric shocks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Theme parks were invented by\nthe father of modern immersion, Walt Disney, in the 1970s, and they have now\nreached peaks of refinement. An example of this is the \u201cStar Wars: Galactic\nStarcruiser\u201d immersive hotel, where, when they check in, guests board a\nspacecraft and stay there for two nights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recent arrival of immersion in museums has given rise to new discussions in the professional community and it has been the core theme at the conferences that have been held in recent years, such as the one by the American Alliance of Museums<\/strong> in 2018 or MW (MuseWeb<\/a><\/strong>)<\/a> in 2019. Barcelona has taken the lead in the 4<\/a>th<\/a><\/sup> Cultural Heritage Conference<\/a><\/strong> entitled \u201cNew Heritage Narratives: From 3D to Immersive Experiences\u201d, which was held on 29 and 30 October. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immersion and its history: from the concept museum to visiting a two-dimensional city <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The workshop was held on the\nfirst day. Its objective was to teach cultural heritage professionals how to\ncreate innovative visiting experiences, based on the study of The Lost Palace<\/em>. The session was\ndirected by Tim Powell<\/strong><\/a>, the creator of the project.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The workshop took place in\none of the most emblematic historical monuments in Catalonia, the Royal\nMonastery of Santes Creus, more than 800 years old. It was not chosen by\nchance. Fifteen participants, divided into four groups using the \u2018Design\nThinking\u2019 method, had to create experiences based on the monastery\u2019s genius loci<\/em>, and to focus the narratives\non different types of tours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n