CREATING AN Augmented Reality EXPERIENCE FOR AN INSTALLATION AT SCIENCE GALLERY DETROIT (2020)

client overview

In 2020, my interactive exhibition proposal, “Immersive Forest,” was chosen to be part of Science Gallery Detroit’s in-person FUTURE PRESENT show. In the initial proposal, participants would visit a series of four rooms which force them to confront design-based approaches across a variety of built spaces and how questions of access and time play out in these spaces.

project overview

This proposal was originally submitted in January 2020 to Science Gallery and was designed pre-COVID. I received word that this piece was selected for FUTURE PRESENT in June 2020 with the show to take place starting in September 2020. Due to a combination of COVID-19, space limitations in the chosen venue, and the design choices by the agency in hanging the show, several changes had to be made to maintain the vision of the project and ensure COVID-19 compliance.

Originally, I planned to have augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) experiences in a built space representing a classroom in the future. After exploring AR and VR options, it became obvious that these technologies already exist, so I changed the types of rooms present and the layout of rooms. In my new layout, I decided to present a museum space brought into the home in our current time, with an AR-based experience. In order to comply with COVID-19 guidelines, the virtual reality portion of the piece was eliminated, and due to the timeframe of creating the piece, the augmented reality portion needed to be simplified and easily available to participants who were socially distancing.

My role: Artist, AR experience creator

Team: N/A

The process

This was my first time creating an augmented reality experience, I created a list of goals for the development and deployment process. I wanted to use a platform that had developer support, to use a platform that users might already be familiar with, to build an AR experience that merge the natural and built worlds together, and to create an experience in line with my goals for the piece of only featuring native trees species. With this set of goals in mind, I created a low-fidelity prototype of the experience and started evaluating AR platforms and their availability.

I chose Snapchat and Lens Studio (the developer studio for Snapchat) in order to meet these requirements. I built my lens by altering the machine-learning based “Ground Segmentation” template in Lens Studio. This template allowed me to create an experience where users could scan a Snapcode and turn the floor of the exhibition space (or their own floors) into the bark of a paper birch tree using one of my paper birch bark photographs. This template also has the functionality of prompting the user to focus on the ground after scanning the code to create the desired overall experience.

Before launching in the gallery space, I performed real-world testing of the lens in a variety of locations, including apartment spaces and retail locations. This testing focused on the reaction of the lens to a variety of obstacles and floor finishes. I wanted those who could not physically attend FUTURE PRESENT to also experience “Immersive Forest,” therefore I chose not to geotag this lens and instead made it widely available. After successful testing, I submitted the lens to Snapchat for approval, and once approved, it was available to all Snapchat users.

In the exhibition space itself, I placed multiple physical copies of the Snapcode, including one with a description of the lens on the wall and a larger one on the floor.

Space constraints of actual exhibition space (outlined in pink).

Layout of the museum of 2020. Bubbles on left-hand side of wall and floor represent locations for Snapcodes for the AR experience.

“Paper Birch” Snapchat lens used in “Immersive Forest” at Science Gallery Detroit’s *FUTURE PRESENT* exhibition

Deliverables

Created a custom Snapchat lens template in Lens Studio for use in a piece that was part of a juried gallery show. This Snapchat lens can still be accessed through Snapchat using the Snapcode below.

Lessons learned

Adapting Immersive Experiences in Light of COVID-19
Creating in-person experiences during COVID-19 (especially prior to vaccine availability) was a challenging task requiring flexibility across a range of dimensions (working with leadership and designers, working in the space, ensuring personal and participant safety).