TOP IMAGE: A view of an exhibit at Arcadia Earth, the first immersive environmental art exhibit to use Microsoft HoloLens’s augmented reality headset to spread awareness about the impacts of climate change, in New York City, U.S., April 28, 2022. Roselle Chen/REUTERS
‘Arcadia Earth’ is an immersive environmental art exhibit in New York City that uses augmented reality to spread awareness about the impact of climate change, said the museum’s founder, Valentino Vettori.
The exhibit has locations in both New York and Las Vegas and is the first immersive augmented reality journey through planet Earth. The environmental storytelling platform is designed to inform, inspire, and activate our community to impact our planet positively.
As visitors wander throughout the rooms filled with immersive installations, such as one made of 44,000 plastic bags—the amount used in New York state every minute before the plastic bag ban—they wear an AR headset that brings the installations to life, teaching environmental facts. Each exhibition is brought to life through immersive technology, animated by augmented reality, virtual reality, projection mapping, and interactive environments where visitors will learn how their small lifestyle changes will impact the future of our planet.
Vettori said the Manhattan exhibit is meant to be seen in a fun way.
“The intention is to inspire people to come and… to deliver a message,” Vettori said. “I really think that this technique, it’s super fun and will work for everybody.”
To ensure the exhibit is accessible to all, Arcadia Earth partnered with financial partner Aspiration. Together they are working to make climate education accessible for everyone.
The HoloLens tour at Arcadia Earth was developed with metaverse platform company Enklu and showcases ecosystems such as forests and the open ocean and environmental issues such as single-use plastic waste and overfishing.
The team creates large-scale multi-sensory journeys, and uses augmented reality, virtual reality, projection mapping, and interactive environments to create uniquely immersive learning opportunities.
Through these exhibitions, visitors will learn about how they can make a positive impact on the future of our planet through small and accessible lifestyle changes.
“I have kids, and I feel the responsibility to do something for their future,” said Vettori.
“Today, if we don’t do something, there will be a challenging future. And I want to make sure that I’m one of those people that will stand by the fact that we try everything we can.”
The New York location is on Broadway and along the strip in Las Vegas. Enjoy a visit through underwater worlds, fantasy lands, and inspirational art installations for a fun and inspirational experience.
Proceeds from tickets sold will go towards planting mangrove trees, which are better at storing climate-warming carbon than most other trees.
(Source: Reuters)
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