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While I have fond memories of preceding sweat tocombine VR content with literal - world locations , I ’d assume the pandemic had put those ambitions to an end . If I wanted VR in 2024 , I thought I ’d have to buy a headset , and it would be a largely solitary experience at habitation or in the office — not something I shared with a crowd in a converted retail blank .
But a young immersive experience proved me wrong .
create by French startupExcurioin quislingism with the Musée d’Orsay and Gedeon Experiences , “ Tonight with the Impressionists , Paris 1874 ” commemorates the 150th anniversary of the first impressionistic art exposition by taking visitors back to nineteenth - century Paris — first onto the city ’s streets , then into the exhibition itself , then to other key emplacement from Impressionist history .
After launch in France and Atlanta , “ Tonight with the Impressionists ” opened Friday at theEclipsoCenter in New York . ( As I understand it , Eclipso allow the infinite for virtual reality experiences , while Excurio created the VR subject matter . ) Like other Excurio experience , this one expend VR to make history and culture more approachable , while also put up a showcase for the fellowship ’s tech .
At a press consequence sooner in the week , my partner and I join a long blood line of people donning VR headset before stepping into a big white elbow room — 11,000 featureless square foot that would be transformed into flat , picture gallery , lakeshore retreats , and more .
UnlikeThe Void(my main reference book point for this character of experience ) , Excurio does n’t attempt to ramp up a physical space or provide props that match to the practical experience , which means space like the Eclipso Center can host multiple experiences at the same time . But it can also lead to some inapt instant — like when the practical surround sloped up while the actual story stayed monotone , or when a Parisian couch was impede by a floating red X , reminding us that we ’d end up on the floor if we seek to sit down down .
Despite the slowness , it really felt like we were in Paris , gaze at classic paintings and speak to their Creator . In perhaps the most breathless moment , we share a balcony with Claude Monet as he paint “ Impression , Sunrise , ” with his employment extend beyond the canvas to fill the horizon .
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Excurio highlights the fact that its experience do n’t expect you to wear bulky VR backpacks , just the headsets , and that it allows for many participant at once — in fact , the company tell it recently broke the track record of plump for more than 100 co-occurrent , free - roaming participant in the same space . It deal those crowds by extend a specific narrative that leads you through the space ; with staggered start times , there should n’t be much risk of bumping into someone else .
In practice , our crowd was obtuse enough that we frequently saw the blank silhouette indicating the proximity of a real person . We never bumped into them , but it added a bit of dealings - dodging stress to the experience . And in the closing , the 45 minutes of “ Tonight with the Impressionists ” felt a bit long for relative VR newbies like us — enough time to finger some oculus strain and discomfort from the equipment .
Still , I have n’t really experience anything like it . It ’s worth tally out for anyone concerned in Impressionist fine art , and even more in the creative and educational hypothesis of VR .
