The Venice festival, known as "Venice Immersive," is this year showcasing a collection of augmented reality works that transport visitors from the ruins of the West Bank to the beauties of 17th-century Amsterdam. Upon entering this exhibition, the first thing that catches your attention is a metal box about chest height, equipped with a lens and two speakers.
When you look inside this box, you see your image from a height of about 20 feet. Other passing guests and a few pigeons under your feet are added to the image. But when one of these passersby stands next to you for a longer time, you inevitably start to wonder why they are standing there. At that moment, the experience turns into a nightmarish ship.
An Imaginary Passerby with a Strange Story
This passerby is not real — or rather, he is only real inside the box. He is wearing a blue coat and narrates a story with a heavy French accent that has no place in polite company. He asks you why you have so much time to lean over this lens for a few minutes. "Why do people look at this box?" he asks. "What do they hope to see? This is not reality."
This exhibition has successfully pushed the boundaries of realities and compelled visitors to deeply contemplate the meaning and nature of reality and human experiences. From creative works to serious impacts of climate change, this festival is a strong representation of new developments in the world of art and technology.
As the festival comes to a close, the displayed works will remain in memory and are likely to influence how we think and interact with the world around us.
