Vis-à-vis with Leonardo. Designing digital encounters

This paper describes the results obtained in two different projects for museum communication aimed at digital restoration and enjoyment at a distance of some artworks of Giovanni Todisco form Abriola. The first project was promoted in the year 2005 by the Municipality of Abriola (Potenza, Italy) and the Basento Camastra Local Action Group as part of the “Cammini d’Europa” project (Asse II Cooperazione transnazionale). It was conducted in collaboration with Officina Rambaldi, an international team of professionals headed by Carlo Rambaldi, Oscar winner for special effects. The objective of this study is basically museographical, i.e. to promote knowledge and virtual exhibition of the works of two great artists of the 16th and 17th centuries, Giovanni and Girolamo Todisco da Abriola. The starting point of this knowledge itinerary is the Sanctuary of Monteforte, in Abriola, virtually reconstructed in 3D using image-based technologies with particular reference to photo-modelling which were integrated into a navigation engine for Real Time 3D content. The overall management of the data on a web-based platform enables the distance viewing of works and places, including the Sanctuary and its geographical context. It also gives access to a pool of heterogeneous information (interactive spherical panoramas, texts, videos, Flash and Shockwave animation, etc.). The use of accurate 3D models enables highly realistic three-dimensional navigation, which is made even more convincing and engaging by the adoption of stereoscopic viewing systems. The project was officially presented to the public only in February 2011, demonstrating the continuing validity and communicative effectiveness of this by-now consolidated technology in terms of both communication and distance viewing of contexts of historical and archaeological interest. The second project regarding the virtual reconstruction of the pictorial cycles located in the monastery of Santa Maria di Orsoleo in Sant'Arcangelo (Potenza) detached from their original context in 1973 for protection purpose. The extraordinary frescoes that were found along the walls of the cloister depict stories the life of the Virgin and Christ, allegorical scenes, episodes from the life of St. Francis and greatest triumphs of life and death. The virtual development is part of the project for conversion of the monastery in Scenographic Museum of the spirituality. The reconstruction process is aimed at re-contextualization of the frescoes through a three-dimensional restitution of cloister using image-based techniques and camera mapping texture mapping. The result has allowed us to view the complete cycles in the original context, and the visitors to understand all the extraordinary expressive force of this artist, symbol of the Lucan Renaissance.

Applied Sciences

This paper is situated at the intersection of using Virtual Reality as a tool for cultural heritage preservation and using gesture interaction-based technology in order to achieve touchless, distant interaction of users with reconstructed artifacts. Various studies emphasize the positive effect on the cultural experience brought on by the use of Virtual Reality in a museum context. We build our approach on this idea, by modeling and reconstructing museum exhibits, both small artifacts and large architectural edifices. We propose and design navigation and interaction scenarios, at the same time taking into account present day limitations regarding social interaction, imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. By considering the user in the center of the experience and focusing on enabling him/her to adjust the perspective on the visualized artifacts and to freely interact with them through natural gestures, we allow the user to immerse in the virtual environment and interact with the reco...

VR Technologies in Cultural Heritage, 2018

Now that virtual reality has finally become a customer ready product, museums can use this new mean to enhance their exhibitions. The main problem however is that such a tool was not thought for casual users, and to adapt this new technology to short experiences such as the ones museums could provide, it is necessary to reduce the adaptation time to the new mean. In this paper, we discuss how removing physical controllers in favour of visually-tracked virtual hands could significantly reduce the time needed by casual users to adapt to new experiences, underlying the current technological limitations both in terms of technology and design.

The ERC project AN-ICON "An-Iconology. History, Theory, and Practices of Environmental Images", in collaboration with Pirelli HangarBicocca, presents the international conference "Immersed in the Work. From the environment to virtual reality". The conference is dedicated to the interactions between environmental images, immersive media and contemporary art practices. The opening day on Monday 13th June, entitled "Surfaces and Depths. Cinema and sculpture in the work of Giorgio Andreotta Calò and Rosa Barba" will take place at Pirelli HangarBicocca. The two artists, who have in the past exhibited their works in these spaces, will talk on this occasion with scholars Giuliana Bruno and Riccardo Venturi. The following three days, curated by Elisabetta Modena and Andrea Pinotti, will take place in the Sala Napoleonica of the State University of Milan and will feature national and international artists and figures from the fields of contemporary art history, aesthetics, critical theory, curatorship and media theory.

Electronic Workshops in Computing

This paper discusses the origins, development and results of the animated and augmented reality aspects of the exhibition 'Leonardo's Impossible Machines' that was developed at

Generally speaking, human beings survive thanks to a continuous interaction with the environment conveyed through the body. At another level, constructivist educational trends stress interactivity as an important methodology for education and communication. Focusing on archaeological presentation and museum communication, this paper examines how the introduction in these fields of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and particularly of Virtual Reality (VR) and multimedia (MM) applications –which are the most usual high-tech exhibits–, is modifying the “traditional” concept of interactivity. Firstly, it establishes the main ideas about the concept’s meaning in education, museums and computers. Afterwards, in order to evaluate their effectiveness as learning tools, it presents the findings obtained in a range of relevant studies, which have analysed some of the several factors involved in the use of ICT in the (informal) learning environment. It concludes with some final remarks about the direction that future uses and evaluation of VR and MM in museums could take.

ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences

Today the ICTs are favourable additions to museum exhibitions. This work aims to realize an innovative system of digital exploitation of artefacts in the National Archaeological Museum of Marche (MANaM), in order to create a shared museum that will improve the knowledge of cultural contents through the paradigm "learning by interacting" and “edutainment”. <br><br> The main novelty is the implementation of stand-alone multimedia installations for digital artefacts that combine real and virtual scenarios in order to enrich the experience, the knowledge and the multi-sensory perception. <br><br> A Digital Library (DL) is created using Close Range Photogrammetry (CRP) techniques applied to 21 archaeological artefacts belonging to different categories. Enriched with other data (texts, images, multimedia), all 3D models flow into the cloud data server from which are recalled in the individual exhibitions. In particular, we have chosen three types of techn...

The Art and Science of Interface and …, 2008

Etruscanning is a European project (Culture 2007) whose aim is to re-create and restore the original context of Etruscan graves. The main objectives are: digital acquisition, digital restoration, 3D representation and implementation of innovative VR environments related to Etruscan tombs and collections in European and Italian Museums. We focused on the Rego- lini-Galassi tomb in the Sorbo necropolis in Cerveteri, one of the most remarkable Etruscan graves. It was discovered still intact in 1836 and is famous not only for its rich contents but also for the objects showing the Orientalising in�uence. The �nds from this tomb are kept in the Gregorian Etruscan Museum in the Vatican Museums and the empty grave at the site is not always open to public. By making 3D reconstructions of the tomb and the objects we can re-create the archaeological context of this Etruscan tomb. As the process of virtual reconstruction of the Regolini-Galassi tomb tries to visualize it at the moment it was closed, we needed to recompose the original placement of the objects and their ancient appearance. This was not easy as we had to reconsider some contradictory historical plans and iconographies (Gri�, Canina, etc.) and to answer some dif�cult questions. The Regolini-Galassi tomb was implemented in a VR environment and a permanent instal- lation was presented in the Vatican Museums in April 2013. A key aspect is the development of natural interaction interfaces: visitors use body movements to explore the 3D space and to access contents without the need for any traditional interface. This solution not only makes the experience more engaging but also allows people of every level of skill to enjoy and learn. This “embodiment” constitutes a new frontier in the communication and learning processes and we believe that it represents a crucial element in museums.

The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, 2018

Thanks to their playful and educational approach Virtual Museum systems are very effective for the communication of Cultural Heritage. Among the latest technologies Immersive Virtual Reality is probably the most appealing and potentially effective to serve this purpose; nevertheless, due to a poor user-system interaction, caused by an incomplete maturity of a specific technology for museum applications, it is still quite uncommon to find immersive installations in museums. This paper explore the possibilities offered by this technology and presents a workflow that, starting from digital documentation, makes possible an interaction with archaeological finds or any other cultural heritage inside different kinds of immersive virtual reality spaces. Two different cases studies are presented: the National Archaeological Museum of Marche in Ancona and the 3D reconstruction of the Roman Forum of Fanum Fortunae. Two different approaches not only conceptually but also in contents; while the Archaeological Museum is represented in the application simply using spherical panoramas to give the perception of the third dimension, the Roman Forum is a 3D model that allows visitors to move in the virtual space as in the real one. In both cases, the acquisition phase of the artefacts is central; artefacts are digitized with the photogrammetric technique Structure for Motion then they are integrated inside the immersive virtual space using a PC with a HTC Vive system that allows the user to interact with the 3D models turning the manipulation of objects into a fun and exciting experience. The challenge, taking advantage of the latest opportunities made available by photogrammetry and ICT, is to enrich visitors' experience in Real Museum making possible the interaction with perishable, damaged or lost objects and the public access to inaccessible or no longer existing places promoting in this way the preservation of fragile sites.

10th International Conference on Digital and Interactive Arts, 2021

Andrea Mantegna's influence over the Renaissance's naturalistic rendition of the space is fundamental, and his works continued to inspire in the next centuries different schools of painting in Europe. His use of the concept of "Trompe L'oeil, " [1] inaugurates a proto-technological system that expands the architectural space of the fresco's technique to illusionistic dimensions. However, recent studies have discovered that some of his frescos depict a more complex representation inspired by writers from the classical world, seeking to immerse the viewers in a more literary narrative and visual perceptions [2]. Those masterpieces followed an ambitious desire to play with illusion as a device to expand their pictorial narrative beyond their formal physical boundaries. That is the case expressed in the series of frescos located at The Palazzo Ducale di Mantova Italy. These painted images are known as the "Camera Picta," "Wedding Chamber", or La Camera degli Sposi. A particular component of these frescos is the application of "di sotto in sù" (seen from below), which represents in a painted vaulted ceiling an opened sky seen through an oculus shape, depicting characters glancing down. Andrea Mantegna playfully organizes this effect and suggests a perception that goes beyond the mere effect of illusion articulating complex and opposed vantage points. The installation described in this paper commits a full and interactive approach to the topics described above. CCS CONCEPTS • Applied computing → Arts and humanities; Media arts.

Journal on Computing and Cultural Heritage, 2014

Starting from our experience in this domain, we discuss some fundamental concepts about the potentialities of the virtual reconstructions of cultural sites inside museums, with a specific focus on the communication needs, the design, the combination of media, the interaction interfaces, and the embodiment. We conceive a virtual reconstruction as a digital ecosystem, whose main peculiarities are (1) 3D reconstruction, (2) inclusivity, and (3) interactivity. A virtual reconstruction, in a wide sense, should integrate different levels of visualization, both realistic and symbolic; 3D models; metadata; storytelling; behaviors; and tools of visualization and interaction, in order to “reconstruct” and communicate a cultural context, an ecosystem where all the information is integrated. Despite the great advancements of the last years in the digitization process, computer graphics techniques, and archiving strategies, a basic limit of most of virtual museums is that they do not fire up the...

2009 15th International Conference on Virtual Systems and Multimedia, 2009

In the mixed reality of the computer installation Presence, which functions as a prototype for a smart space, the visitor is placed in the position of a person in audience with the king. The interaction with a digital avatar is structured according to the rules of social behaviours and following the script of the Shakespeare's play. The paper explains different aspects of the conceptualisation of an interdisciplinary collaboration between artists and computer engineers.

International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning (iJAC)

This article summarizes the concept of a new immersive and interactive setting for the Zoology Museum in Rome, Italy. The concept, co-designed with all the museum’s curators, is aimed at enhancing the experiential involvement of the visitors by visual storytelling and interactive iconography. Thanks to immersive and interactive technologies designed by Centro Studi Logos, developed by Logosnet and known as e-REALâ and MirrorMeä, zoological findings and memoirs come to life and interact directly with the visitors in order to deepen their understanding, visualize stories and live experiences, and interact with the founder of the Museum (Mr. Arrigoni degli Oddi) who is now a virtualized avatar, or digital human, able to talk with the visitors. All the interactions are powered through simple hand gestures and, in a few cases, vocal inputs that transform into recognized commands from multimedia systems.

In this paper we focuses on the virtual reconstruction of the Regolini Galassi tomb in Cerveteri, one of the most famous of the Orientalising period. In the framework of the Etruscanning project a VR application has been realized for permanent use in museums, based on new, low cost and mark-less natural interaction interfaces. The choice of natural interaction is not a purely technical solution for input. It strongly influences the perceptive impact of the real time exploration, the embodiment, the objects' selection and manipulation metaphors, the combination of media, the narrative contents length and the user experience. The evaluation of the public feedback conducted in occasion of some exhibitions allowed us to verify the gesture grammar we were developing and to improve the interfaces step by step.