The digital process of superimposing images, text or sounds on what people can see is called augmented reality. An application that operates on a smartphone or touch tablet can achieve surprising results. For example, a visitor to an exhibition stops at a scene and, by simply holding their device, can access an enlarged version of the physical elements before them.
On a large scale, games like Pokémon Go have helped popularize this system. In fact, this entertainment proposal has been downloaded more than one billion times. There can be no better demonstration of the potential of this technology to reach a large audience. While virtual reality, which requires devices such as headsets, sensors, glasses or controllers, provides absolute immersion in an artificial environment, augmented reality enriches what users can see with added elements.
One of the areas in which augmented reality is proliferating are museums. It is often used to add explanations to sample pieces. There is even the possibility that reproductions of the authors or the most relevant characters of the works may intervene in the narratives or comments. With this complement, it is possible to attract a broader and more heterogeneous public, admit those responsible for these centers.
At first, the promoters of this initiative were concerned that this tool would end up isolating attendees, closing them in a bubble. However, practice showed that what was happening was just the opposite. This was the case in facilities as different and heterogeneous as the Natural History Museum in Paris, the National Gallery in London, the National Museum of Singapore, the Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto) or the Pérez Art Museum in Miami.
As is usual in the extension of the fourth and fifth industrial revolutions, there have also been controversies linked to augmented reality. One of the most notable was the one that occurred in the Jackson Pollock gallery of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the well-known MoMa. On that occasion, a group of creators reinvented the paintings of the master of abstract expressionism… without the permission of the center’s directors.
Curators and curators strive not to overshadow with virtual reality the pieces of other artists who remain unaffected by this additive. In general, everyone complains about the price of this innovation. The effect is most striking, but the budgets are usually prohibitive. In any case, thanks to this instrument, the observation and study time of each work increases considerably.
