Japanese Art of the Edo Period Everyman Art Library
United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland-Nihon Location-Based VR Network
January 2019- May 2020
Jointly funded by ESRC & AHRC
Dylan Yamada-Rice (PI), Co-Is: John Potter, University College London, Angus Principal & Eleanor Dare, Royal College of Art, Steve Love, Glasgow School of Art, Takuji Narumi, Academy of Tokyo and partners Andrew Douthwaite, WEARVR, Kei Miyoshi, Location-based VR Clan Japan and Akihiro Ando, Hashilus
The overall intention of this knowledge commutation (KE) project was to join a network of academics and digital gaming industry partners in Nippon and the UK to join upwardly knowledge, brainstorm researching the electric current state of VR experiences and technologies, and to understand the all-time methodologies for including children in the design of VR experiences for them. This was undertaken and then that this knowledge can be applied to areas in which VR is evolving for children, such as entertainment, didactics and health care. Further details are bachelor on the project blog
Images: exploring location-based VR in the Great britain
Central findings from the project related to (1) The Virtual Unreal, (2) Illusion and Magic (iii)Concrete Materials and Details and (4) Emotions and Social Experiences. Further details of these are available in the following publication:
Publications
Yamada-Rice, D., Dare, E. Primary, A., Potter, J., Ando, A. Miyoshi, Thousand., Narumi, T., Beshani, S., Clark, A., Duszenko, I. Honey, Due south., Nash, R., Rodrigues, D., Stearman, N. (2020)Location-Based Virtual Reality Experiences for Children: Japan-United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland Knowledge Commutation Network: Final Project Report . Available online hither
Talks
Dare & Yamada-Rice (2021) Virtual [UN]Reality: the role of magic in immersive storytelling, Immersive Storytelling Symposium, Lakeside Arts, 2nd Nov 2021
Invited Speaker: Yamada-Rice, D. (2021) Children and Virtual Reality, UCL Centre for Multimodality Talks, 15th October, 2021
Invited Panellist: Yamada-Rice, D. (2020) VR & Children: Opportunities and Critiques, Interaction Design and Children (IDC), Virtual Conference, 24th June 2020
Invited Keynote: Yamada-Rice, D. (2020) Children & VR: Game + Blueprint Education, PUDCAD Universal Blueprint Teaching Practice Conference, 24 June 2020, virtual conference
Invited Keynote: Yamada-Rice, D. (2019) Clash of Realities, Cologne, Germany, 20th Nov 2019
Image: project team
About
There is a need for location-based VR experiences for children in a range of sectors that include entertainment, education and health. The need is evidenced in the findings of the commercially-funded research entitled 'Children and VR (CVR)' that shows how 8 to 12-year-olds use VR in highly tactile means, that cross virtual and physical environments. This is the case even when the content has not been designed with this intention and thus indicates a desire for mixed reality equally opposed to purely digital immersive experiences (Yamada-Rice, et al, 2017).
Further, market research data from Dubit Global Trends (2018) provides initial insight into how the technology fits into children's everyday lives to suggest that location-based virtual experiences are probable to exist sought because they are more inclusive and engaging than devices and content currently bachelor for the domestic marketplace. Also, many households are also busy or don't accept enough space or money to set up VR experiences in the dwelling.
The need for farther research on location-based experiences is also apparent in other sectors too such as education, wider creative industries (i.e. theatre and museums), equally well equally child health.
John Potter (Co-I) has been studying VR and children equally part of the 'Playing the Annal' projection (EPSRC funded). In the wellness sector, Dylan Yamada-Rice has received Innovate Great britain funding to produce a mixed reality play kit to help children have an MRI scan without general aesthetic. Additionally, Steve Love (Co-I) is concluding an AHRC/EPSRC Research and Partnership Development call for the Side by side Generation of Immersive Experiences which is focused on setting design standards for VR for kid use.
Research in Japan is also focused on the adjacent generation of experiences, such as that being carried out by our Professor Narumi (Co-I) who is undertaking research and development in areas such as virtual embodiment through physical additions designed to fit the body.
The chance to undertake KE activities with Japanese partners is further of import because research on semiotics and related social practices shows how unlike English, Japanese communication practices foregrounds emotional expression rather than objects and time (e.g. Shelton & Okayama, 2006). This is particularly relevant to VR considering the medium is increasingly considered a good lucifer for content that centres on emotions and empathy which are of import to both game, amusement and health pattern, and is emerging every bit the primal affordance that is separating this medium from others that have gone before.
Man and Non-man Entities in Japanese Stories
In Japan in that location is an affinity with non-human entities. Of form this includes other living creatures and nature only it also extends to machines and an otherworldly-ness of spirits and gods that co-ordinate to Shintoism reside in many things. In the Barbican AI exhibition 'More than than Human', a whole section is dedicated to Shintoism and the connection between human being and not-human things in Nihon. This is used as a framework for thinking about the connection between people and machines in an era of rapid AI development.
"In the Japanese faith of Shinto, Kami are Devine forces or spirits of nature that surpass human intelligence. There are more than viii million kami that live in natural forms including the sun, oceans, mountains, trees, rocks and animals. They are also believed to alive in tools, technologies and extraordinary people. According to Shinto behavior, all these entities respect each other and live in harmony.""In Japanese culture and fine art, life breathes in people, living creatures and artificial objects alike. This perspective is reflected in animation, games and technology."
Wall writing from More than Human, Barbican
The exhibition continued from this starting point, to describe on objects from popular culture and evidence how such ideas have been integrated into other aspects of Japanese life. For example, the Manga and Anime serial entitled Doremon, which is the name given to a robot-cat that travels dorsum from the 22nd Century to assist a boy. The exhibition states that Doremon has 'had tremendous influence on Japanese robotic philosophy and technological developments'.
"In fiction, characters can be humans, animals, machines or artificial objects with human emotions. From early on babyhood, almost Japanese people are accepted to stories where non-homo entities co be with people. This has greatly influenced Japanese attitudes towards applied science" (More than than Human, the Barbican).
On a visit to the Kyoto International Manga Museum during the network field trip, an exhibition highlighted how stories from manga cross into other platforms such every bit toys:
The concluding paragraph of the higher up description shows how in a like fashion to Manga, toys are reflections of wider social, cultural and historic practices. Theo Van Leeuwen, in relation to his work on semiotic and multimodal practices, has as well shown how Western toys such as Lego are also a reflection of wider social patterns.
For the past few years, I take been an gorging collector of gachagacha (also known every bit gachapon). These are plastic capsules delivered from a vending machine. Each capsule forms a lucky dip of one small toy from a series. I have been documenting these on an Instagram business relationship and tagging themes. These themes evidence many are a combination of a living and non-living entity such as animal combined with food:
The connection between humans and fish in Japan is some other surface area that appears both in gachagacha but also in other areas too:
Afterward the Robot Show, in which we watched a live performance filled with fictional characters based on Japanese historical stories and mashed together with robots, Angus mentioned that the show reminded him of children playing in forepart of a Television prove, bashing toys together as they reenacted the story. To some extent this is exactly what information technology was but those narratives have evolved from layers and layers of stories that accept been re-hashed and added to throughout Japanese history:
In a higher place is an prototype of the fish fight sequence of the Robot Show and on the left a Kaiju monster toy from the Television set show Ultraman. Perhaps these are both a reflection of the wider connectedness between Japan and the Ocean:
What does all this mean for understanding site-specific VR experiences? For me, it questions whether in an era in which VR, XR and AI are emerging together, perchance there are other cultural histories that can permit us to theorise the connection between human and non-human entities including machines and robots to retrieve nearly how nosotros design for these evolving technologies.
Culture, History and VR Development
Kress (2003) describes how communication practices arise from changes in technology, social and cultural practices. Geertz (1973) defines civilization as: 'the fabric of meaning in terms of which human beings interpret their experience and guide their actions [while] social structure is the form that action takes, the really existing network of social relations' (p. 145). In other words, our very specific cultural and personal backgrounds control our interpretation of experiences. In relation to my own experiences of Japanese location-based VR content this is in relation to both being British, simply also having spent my twenties and early thirties living in Japan. As a result my interpretation of several of the Japanese experiences drew directly from this connection to the culture; i as fractional insider just also an outsider. For example, on a visit to Hashilus I played with one of their VR experiences called Happy Oshare (Stylish) Time.
Happy Oshare Time
In this game players take on an avatar in the common manga aesthetic of large eyes, big hair and cute clothing. In the first part of the experience players have the opportunity to choose their hair styles and eye colour, to try out different outfits and accessories. The experience is multiplayer and so you are able to comment on your friends choices and savour the dressing up action together- a social and performative experience.
In the second part of the experience, players compete to sing and dance at a concert past catching stars in time with the music. I attached this experience to a range of other historic and culturally specific practices. Long before smartphones were widespread and taking selfies had appeared on the scene there was Purikura.
Purikura
The discussion purikura is a condensed version of printo kurabu, the Japanese rendering of the English words 'Print Lodge'. It refers to the Japanese practice of individuals taking selfies commonly with friends, in specially designed booths, which provide a range of backgrounds and also the means for adding writing, drawing and assorted emoji and stamps to the photograph. Once completed the photographs are printed quickly equally a canvass of stickers to be cut and shared. In the by they were collected in albums or stuck to personal belongings. With the advent of smartphones Purikura as well began to exist forwarded to mobile phones for broadcasting.
Purikura may not accept allowed united states of america change our outfits, simply it did widen our eyes and allow u.s. to change the colour of our hair, add make up etc. In that location was a performative aspect too; before starting time to accept the images nosotros had to choose if we wanted to be in 'normal' mode or 'sexy' fashion and the auto made recommendations for how to pose for the images and what aesthetic style to use based on our answer. Above you can run into us posing in Sexy Mode!
Researchers of Purikuri practices have tended to focus on how it has been taken up past girls and young women in Japan and as a effect tend to focus on how their class and creation reflect gender (Chalfen and Murai 2001; Miller 2003; Okabe et al 2006; 2009). Nonetheless, at the level of the text itself it can be analysed every bit beingness part of a wider cultural practice. Just equally I am doing in the analysis of this particular VR feel.
The performative aspect of the VR experience reminded me of other cultural practices such equally Karaoke, Maid Cafes and Cos Play.
Performance: Karaoke, Maid Cafes and Cosplay
Karoke has been adapted into the English language and so does not need any explanation. The term Cosplay comes from combining and shortening two words 'Costume' and 'Play', and refers to the practice of dressing up and performing as a specific character ordinarily from Manga or Anime. Off the top of my head such spaces for playing and imagining go dorsum at least as far as the Edo Menstruum (1603-1868) where club was so tightly controlled that on the outskirts of old Tokyo a pleasance district existed called the Floating Earth. This offered a space abroad from the rules of the everyday and allowed the chance to play and make believe.
The Floating Globe: 'was a realm of the imagination that fostered a kind of artful which cherished the passing moment the temporal flux for their ain sake.'
Guth, 1996, p.29
Indeed, dressing upwards was as well a office of this world. In the rule stricken Edo many types of wearable were banned only in the floating earth manner became elaborate. Drawings of the floating globe known as Ukiyoe depicted these wearing apparel and when the woodblock prints reached those inside Edo as well influenced a desire to vesture these types of flamboyant fabrics and styles.
Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861): Princess Takiyasha Calling Up a Monstrous Skeleton Spectre at the Haunted Former Palace at Soma (1844-1848).
In recent years, it could be argued that maid cafes have on this role of providing a space for escapism. Customers, both male and female tin exist served food and drinks by women dressed as french maids. The cafe itself is designed to feel like a home making the experience all that more personal. The narratives of such spaces exist in the setting of the building and the costumes of the staff (and sometimes the customers). An open-ended space designed to foster imagination and make believe not dissimilar many of the VR experiences I have tried but particularly similar to Happy Oshare Time.
Conclusion
It would be interesting to compare how Japanese people familiar with associated genres such as anime, cos play, manga and Purikura inhabit this item VR space. Even with my limited knowledge of these Japanese practices I institute myself embodying a persona of a character that has derived from an affiliation of these earlier practices and genres. Yes that is me dressed up as chocolate with rainbow coloured eyes!
References Chalfen, R.and Murui, Chiliad. (2001) Print club photography in Japan: Framing social relationships. Visual Studies, Vol. xvi, No. 1, p. 55–73
Geertz, C. (1973) The estimation of Cultures.
Guth, C. (1996) Japanese Fine art of the Edo Menstruum. Everyman Art Library.
Kress, M. (2003) Literacy in the New Media Age. London & New York: Routledge.
Miller, L. (2003) Graffiti Photos: Expressive art in Japanese girls; culture. Harvard Asia Quarterly, vol.two, no. 3 summertime 2003, p. 31-42.
Okabe, D., Chipchase, J. , Ito, M. & Shimizu, A. (2006) The Social Uses of Purikura: photographing, modding, archiving and sharing. PICS Workshop, Ubicomp 2006: 1-6.
Modes, Materials and Performance in the Pattern of Location-based VR
The VR Park Shibuya is an arcade hosting location-based VR experiences. These are site specific content designed for VR play away from the home setting. Every bit a result, location-based VR experiences often have a physical component which provides a different experience to that which can be achieved on a dwelling house console such as the Play Station VR. This is something more akin to fit in with the 'experience economic system' and thus in the all-time case scenarios the physical set tin can bring an extra dimension to the VR play worthy of making an audience feel they are paying for an "experience" they could not accept elsewhere.
The VR Park occupies one floor of a well established game centre. Each floor is defended to different types of gaming content. The ground flooring for example has mostly prize based games similar the UFO catcher below:
I made notes nearly each of the experiences I tried in society to empathise how they related to dissimilar modes of communication and materials to call up well-nigh what each brought to the various overall experiences. Gunther Kress (2010) states that modal choices are brought together to produce one overall text with each manner playing a distinct role: 'Each mode does a specific thing: epitome shows what takes as well long to read, and writing names would be difficult to prove' (p. 1). Kress goes on to say that each mode lends itself to 'doing dissimilar kinds of semiotic work; and each has distinct potential for meaning.' (ibid). Given that the design and production of location-based VR experiences is and then new an agreement is needed of how the means in which modes and materials are used adds or distracts from the overall experience.
In my educational activity on the MA in Information Experience Blueprint at the Royal College of Art this is something I ask students to think about when designing their own work. The following is an instance of how MA IED graduate Felix Scholder responded to this with his VR feel about Netsuke:
Truck Coaster
This experience consisted of a physical truck of a roller coaster combined with the VR experience of travelling through rail tracks in a jungle. The experience ended past crashing the audition into a pile of hidden gilt treasure
Physical Materials: Roller coaster truck with metal hand runway. Big plenty for four players to use the feel at the same fourth dimension.
On-boarding: Seat belt on, staff country to hold the hand rails throughout the experience. They besides helped each actor put the headset on.
I ended up playing this game twice and this got me thinking nearly repeat play. The start time I felt the emotions that had been designed for me to experience but the second fourth dimension around in that location were no surprises and as a effect I felt less emotional heightened.
Across the form of the field trip, I began to think about how important or non it is for a game to offering a repeatable experience. Talking with our industry partners Hashilus and the Location-based VR Association about this, they mentioned that some games are designed so that the VR element can be updated without the need to engineer a new physical experience. If this is the case how far can a VR experience where the audience needs to sit in a roller coaster truck be pushed? Different types of setting for the rollercoaster? Would that be its limitation?
Angus and I talked about the emotional narration in this experience. A constant narrative about how the experience feels. Angus said he thought this was to compensate for the fact that although you are on the ride other people you cannot share the emotional feel with them as such, because you are largely separated by the HMD and the soundtrack for the experience. I noted that it also seems to follow a pattern of emotional narration that tin be found in more than wide spread examples of Japanese meaning making practices:
Materials: Carpet with a roped bulwark effectually it. The carpeting can be felt under pes and thus provides a level of grounding. The rope gives the user something to hold onto and another link to the physical world while in the virtual one.
MU VR
MU VR was a social game in which we started by sitting around a table designed to look like a conference room. Nosotros were given a mission that every bit news reporters we would find ourself on another planet and take the adventure to photograph aliens. The reporter to capture the best epitome would be crowned "acme scoop" and accept their film published in a magazine.
Concrete Materials: A circular tabular array with chairs around it.
Visual: The tabular array in the Virtual infinite looked dissimilar form the physical one nosotros were sat at. Does this matter?
The game got me thinking about the variety of means in which players demand to be on-boarded into VR experiences While nosotros were waiting to play MU VR I was given the above instructions to read. They made little sense to me ahead of being in the experience. There were also instructions in the game itself and a member of staff stood by to help united states play as well. When we visited our industry partners Hashilus and the Location-based VR Association we were told how one of the biggest resource for location-based VR experiences is the need to accept staff to facilitate use, and they were trying to find ways to reduce this cost past exploring means for all the on-boarding to take place in the feel itself. This tin be seen in the example below where the instructions for how to put on the HMD are situated on a screen side by side to where coin is inserted to enable use:
In this experience information technology became clear that there is also an opportunity for the on-boarding to play a function in getting the audience into character for the VR experience as well. Before existence allowed to have office in the Bungee feel I was asked by staff to sign a waiver form in the event of accident or death. Our group were left unsure as to whether this was an actual waiver or only to put you in the mood for the experience and heighten some tension a head of the bound in the same way a bungee leap in the concrete world might do.
References
Kress, G. (2010) Multimodality: A social semiotic approach to contemporary advice. Oxon: Routledge.
Maynard, S. (1993) Soapbox Modality: Subjectivity, Emotion and Voice in the Japanese Language. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Source: https://dylanyamadarice.com/RESEARCH-UK-Japan-Location-based-VR-Network
0 Response to "Japanese Art of the Edo Period Everyman Art Library"
Post a Comment