After a quick visit to the Golden Gate bridge (traffic jams and a slightly disappointing vantage point) I made my way to the San Francisco Mint for Verse: The Art of The Future, an exhibition of augmented reality artworks. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to like this, as my previous (limited) experiences of headset-based realities had been clunky and underwhelming. But I loved it.
The aesthetic was not high art, definitely a fun steampunk vibe plus a dash of kitsch in the brick underground vaults with upholstered chairs and plenty of neon. I particularly liked the virtual portraits (available as NFTs) on the walls, but there was more than a hint of 70s prog rock album cover art about many of the exhibits themselves. This was dragons in dungeons.
To rewind: you put on a headset and the empty room leaps into life with moving 3d exhibits you can walk through and around. This was alive, joyful and a welcome escape (from reality?). I thought back to the contrasting stasis of my MOMA white cube experience. I would show you some pictures, but the app would not load on my phone (it is not yet available on the Play Store). Which neatly summed things up: unlike genuine reality (do we really have to start saying that now?) alternative realities remain glitchy and close out non-participants, for now at any rate. But this was impressive and I am sure that this technology will become more widespread as it matures.
I then went to the Exploratorium, where I met Kirstin Bach. The Exploratorium is like the Science Museum on steroids: every single exhibit is interactive and explorable. There are miniature tornados, geysers, rain and fog systems, plus all manner of optical illusions, life science exhibits and pulleys, levers and buttons. Again the atmosphere was one of delight and playfulness, created by the element of participation combined with some truly astonishing effects.
Probably Chelsea by Artist-In-Residence Heather Dewey-Hagborg at the Exploratorium
The Exploratorium hosts an artist residency programme and I wanted to find out more about how they work with artists and the interplay between art and science. Our conversation covered many aspects of the art/science continuum and it was striking that the same element of open enquiry that is fostered through the exhibits is also what drives many artists in their work.
Kirstin Bach in the parabolic listening dome
This was another good day; I once again forgot the photo, which is symptomatic of my brain now becoming pretty well full up. Luckily I have scheduled a day off tomorrow, no meetings planned and a chance to reflect and regroup.
