[W Forum] New Experiences Offered by Realistic Media

I visited the ‘Arte Museum Gangneung,’ which opened last December. It is the third space following Jeju and Yeosu. The 12 ‘immersive media art’ exhibition halls set up in a 1,500-pyeong area project three-dimensional images onto flat screens, use mirrors to create a sense of space, and add sound and scent, offering a new experience with works that capture the great nature of Gangwon Province, such as waterfalls, forests, and flower fields, in addition to traditional artworks. It was refreshing to see people of all ages interacting with and enjoying the ‘artificial nature’ digitally realized, as if they were actually feeling the falling water of a waterfall or facing the incoming waves. The sight of young visitors cheering and marveling when their hand-colored animal drawings appeared on the screen brought smiles.

Immersive media art is a representative example of realistic media that vividly conveys sensory information and maximizes immersion and presence. In Korea, it began in 2018 with ‘Light Bunker,’ which showcased works by Gustav Klimt, Vincent van Gogh, and others in video form at a closed national telecommunications facility in Jeju, similar to France’s ‘Carri?res de Lumi?res.’ The three Arte Museums and Jeju’s ‘Nohyeong Supermarket’ are widely known as exhibition halls offering immersive media art experiences. Last year, an exhibition by Japan’s leading media art group teamLab was also held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP).

Although the development of realistic media based on various technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, and holograms is progressing rapidly, everyday experiences remain limited. However, immersive media art, which combines technology and art, provides opportunities to directly experience and enjoy realistic media that once felt distant. Audience responses have been enthusiastic. Since its opening at the end of September 2020, the cumulative number of visitors to Arte Museum Jeju has exceeded 900,000.

There are also criticisms of immersive media art. Some argue that it uses artworks merely as flashy eye candy without true creativity, calling it a deception. However, masterpieces by van Gogh are only the subject matter; media art offers a new way to appreciate these artworks, and by leveraging technology and creativity, it creates differentiated experiences. It provides opportunities to appreciate rarely accessible artworks in new ways previously unexperienced, ultimately contributing to the expansion and diversification of art appreciation. Furthermore, it can stimulate creativity for new forms of content beyond spatial limitations. As an intersection of technology and art, it can give birth to a new art genre and become another driving force in media and cultural industries.

The use of realistic media outside the art field is also notable. Brand marketing actively borrows the immersive media art format not just to convey information or images but to foster interaction through all senses and create diverse experiences. Consumer experiences relate not only to function but also to emotion, and vivid, immersive, and differentiated experiences can lead to loyalty. The sense of presence and immersion provided by realistic media is also important in fields such as journalism and public campaigns.

The outlook for realistic media is bright, but ultimately content is key. It is necessary to have content that goes beyond simply implementing flashy and vivid images, fully utilizing the capabilities of realistic media such as interactivity, and effectively achieving communication goals. This year, new media art exhibition halls and media art exhibitions are scheduled to open. Realistic media is rapidly approaching our daily lives.

Choi Se-jung, Professor, Department of Media Studies and Graduate School, Korea University

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.