Revisiting VR and AR in fine art display online.

I've had a website for almost 25 years. From the rudimentary beginning to the interesting re-birth of potential in the present. From the days of dialup to fiber optics. Speed is everything when it comes to broadcasting an ever-burgeoning supply of imagery. My ISP offers a number of plans all the way up to 1 GB. While other providers offer fast internet speeds, I've been extremely grateful that my provider has a reliable and stable connection, and I live in a rural area.

Speed and stability are essential components in a universe of the internet of things, but it also provides the test platform for experimentation and development. In the art world, this means larger images with more detail with greater "drill down" potential.

(An aside: Unfortunately, the digital divide limits accessibility for many millions of people at all income levels, with a bias toward low-income households and people of color, based on their location in areas that are difficult to justify the expense of infrastructure while putting a cap on the potential of this and future generations who will choose to live where internet accessibility is greatest. For more information: https://www.digitaldividecouncil.com/what-is-the-digital-divide/

While that alone is lamentable, the digital divide places a hard ceiling on economic development by limiting access to the digital marketplace, distance learning, telemedicine, conferencing, and, not least of all closing the door to potential digital innovations. Internet and website applications, including mobile applications, thrive in the flexibility and multiplicity of the tools of development and those who can make them work.)

I once offered to a museum, that shall not be mentioned, a free indexed catalog in a virtual, immersive environment. Ambitious to be sure. Their response which was very shortsighted, albeit polite, was based on the concern that access to a digital, virtual museum, would limit actual visitors to the brick and mortar museum. We know that is wrong because people want to see art in person and we want to learn. So both the virtual and the physical go hand in hand. There are exceptions. The Mona Lisa is one. People love to be photographed with the Mona Lisa while totally ignoring all the other magnificent art that surrounds them.

Needless to say that the Google Art program opened up many museums for virtual tours and gradually certain museums with large collections began freely sharing images from their collections. One of my favorites is https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en It is also possible to view contemporary art freely through the various websites that market this work. A good example is https://www.artsy.net/news

Clutter

There are certain challenges with showing art on-line. One is clutter. The abundance of imagery means a lot of overwhelming choices, and if that is related to purchases, clutter can lead to choice fatigue. We don't have a good way to filter imagery narrowly. That is not to say that we can't "narrow" what we see, for example, in a sort of digital Darwinian way, going "viral". We use hashtags "#". We often depend on what other people have selected, such as in using Pinterest. Or in the physical world, relying on experts such as agents, galleries, and art consultants to name a few.

That doesn't mean, of course, that the most compelling images will get lost. On the other hand, it might mean that certain categories of artists may become less innovative and a bit frustrated by the competitive environment.

Which begs the question. Is there enough "virtual-physicality" to create a compelling desire to buy without seeing the actual work in person.? Sometimes. Especially in low to moderate price ranges (with low risk). So the answer is both yes and no.

I believe, for a long time, that an on-line presence, including a website, provides a means of networking with individuals, artists, and buyers that establishes an introduction to an interested audience. For that to be meaningful and effective, an artist's online presence has to be authentic and curated. I often speak my mind. I have to, and I believe it addresses my own authenticity. Social media does allow for some curating of content in the form of words. But I've found that on my own website, my work also has to be curated. From time to time, the collection I share with people needs to be culled, especially during times of serious transition, like a change in direction, stylistically, or because of subject matter or other innovations. Over time, I've changed and my work is changing.

I also try to reduce clutter so that exploring my website can begin with a single image. I want visitors to be enticed, surprised, engaged, seduced. Although I try not "sell" since that's not me, I'm always trying to make it easier for people to buy. To do that, I try to be accessible and that seems more important than almost anything else, except clearly pricing my work and letting people know we can always talk about affordability.

I'm also gradually expanding the importance of the virtual experience of art with the premise that people need to see my work as its best self. I don't want to just "throw it out there". Since I do my own coding this takes a long time. Automation is hard work and VR/AR can become complex as you step beyond the most simplistic versions. For example, in my yard is a QR code. I put it there because our city sign ordinance forbids yard signs to be larger than one square foot. Whenever I can, during an exhibit, I like to use QR codes to open a door to more information about my work. Also, I've set up my virtual viewing "rooms" to suggest depth and physicality. Even though paintings are flat, they still have a shallow depth so they need to appear to belong in the room you see them in. This isn't an attempt to make a painting "real", rather it's an issue of presentation.

For several years I experimented with immersive VR and discovered that it's too hard to navigate, even as simple as that might be. Technology shows us that a headset and the feeling of being in a room or another space is very cool, and it is. However, that experience supersedes the aesthetics of the artwork being presented so I've abandoned that effort for now. Nevertheless, augmented reality will be coming soon to my website if I can do it in a way that is sufficiently simple, clean, and again, good for the presentation of my work. In time, if immersive VR/AR with a headset becomes so pervasive and useful that it doesn't get in the way of my own content, I reconsider it.

Below: An example of one of two of my own viewing rooms. Visit www.dickshook.com to check it out for yourself.