For Desktop - Ensure full software loading before clicking ‘Confirm’ to begin. If the loading process takes longer than expected, feel free to refresh the page to expedite it. Alternatively, you can consider changing browsers if the issue persists. For optimal immersion, play in the landscape full-screen mode (located in the bottom right). To exit full-screen mode, simply press the ‘Esc’ key. While this program is accessible on mobile devices (iOS/Android), double-click functionality for folders may not be supported; desktop play is highly recommended for a smoother experience.

This piece seeks to highlight narrative structures as a transformative substitute for conventional “conceptual” foundations in contemporary fine art settings. The text-based RPG allows participants to delve into the artist’s body of work, encouraging personal interpretation and engagement with each piece. The shift from observer to player heightens the sense of personal autonomy, increasing the intimacy of the artistic encounter.

Placed within the context of historic architecture and artwork, this piece draws inspiration from a longstanding artistic tradition. The idea of transposing the audience into an enclosed, illusionary visual space was not born with the invention of the computer. Instead, it is grounded in a solid art historical tradition whose core idea reaches back to antiquity. It’s this tradition that has been revived and expanded in the immersive digital art of the current age, that “this kind of immersive reality excludes the sensation of being alienated by the image and surrounds the observer in an illusory setting where time and space are one.”

The ultimate effect of this piece is to bring out a sense of emotional presence or mood intended to elicit a dimension of human experience that would have been referred to as ‘religious’ for a long period of human history during which the aim of the artists and architects striving for such a union of arts would have been precisely the evocation of such a response. However, it diverges from this religious context, venturing into something new, something we might call “transcendental secularism,” where the sacred is replaced with the profound, offering a novel, immersive and personal experience.

Three-dimensionally embodied, online virtual worlds offer considerable scope for narratives, including fully-fledged practices of “gesamtkunstwerk” or “total work of art”. The aim of this work is to create a unity of effect within a (albeit virtually) physical environment that invites the participation of the viewer as a consolidated whole.

In the zoomed-out square format, the text and finer details become illegible, this shifts the focus towards pure aesthetic appreciation and abstraction, rather than functional legibility. By contrast, the landscape view restores legibility, allowing textual and narrative elements to be accessed. The piece oscillates between art object and explorable medium.

Incorporating cuneiform and hieroglyphic symbols into a digital user interface bridges the gap between ancient and modern communication methods. This choice of symbols not only adds an aesthetic dimension to the interface but also serves as a powerful reminder of the long history of human communication and our ongoing quest to express ourselves and share information. By using these ancient symbols, there is a sense of continuity between the past and the present, emphasizing the deep-rooted connection between early writing systems and contemporary digital communication. This approach also invites users to reflect on the evolution of language and the role of technology in shaping the way we communicate, both in the past and in the present day.

Drawing upon the aesthetic possibilities of digital media, the project explores the unique spatial-temporal experiences that a digital interface can offer. The use of a desktop simulation creates an intimate cognitive space that reflects the viewer's mental activities and habits. This project, therefore, delves into the concept of a computer desktop as a cognitive map - a spatial representation of one's mental activities. It reflects on how the aesthetics of cyberspace can be used to create intimate, immersive experiences that blend the boundaries between the virtual and physical, between the external and internal.

References: Manovich, Lev. Examine his theories on the aesthetics of digital forms and "information space." Manovich discusses how digital environments redefine our concept of space and representation, which may offer valuable insights for the project.

This project subtly critiques *techno-determinism - the belief that technology shapes our society and behaviour - by incorporating a desktop interface that hints at surveillance culture and issues of privacy.* It invokes questions about the implications of our digital activities being continually monitored and recorded. Moreover, the project engages with posthumanism and cyborg theory by exploring the blurred boundaries between human and machine. It suggests that *technology is not just a tool but an integral part of our identity,*echoing Haraway's assertion in her Cyborg Manifesto that we are all cyborgs, entwined with technology.

References: Haraway, Donna. Consider her "Cyborg Manifesto," especially in terms of exploring the blurred boundaries between human and machine. The project's exploration of AI ethics and surveillance culture also aligns with Shoshana Zuboff's work on surveillance capitalism.

The inclusion of a time stamp that counts 100 seconds as a minute in the interface distorts our perception of time in virtual environments. This manipulation creates temporal elasticity, challenging our fixed notion of time. It encourages focused engagement and offers new temporal experiences, highlighting the subjectivity of time perception through digital means. Ultimately, it underscores the flexibility of time in digital spaces, turning the interface into an experimental space for reimagining time as an aesthetic material and showcasing how virtual spaces can create alternate realities.

References: Virilio, Paul. "Picnolepsy and Speed-Based Visual Technologies." Virilio's concept of "picnolepsy" explores how new speed-based visual technologies compress our perception of time and space. This concept is relevant to the discussion of how the interface time stamp can manipulate our perceived duration.

This project engages with the concepts of hypermediacy and multimodality, where the medium itself becomes an integral part of the narrative. By blurring the traditional separation between medium and message, the project suggests that meaning-making occurs across multiple modes of communication. This goes beyond just text or visuals to include the medium of the video game interface itself. Furthermore, by incorporating elements of video game language into contemporary fine art, the project engages in remediation and intermediality. Remediation refers to the idea that new media borrows from and reformulates old media. In this case, the work brings the medium of video games into the realm of fine art, allowing for dynamic interactions between these media forms and introducing new aesthetic possibilities.

References: Bolter, Jay David, and Richard Grusin. "Remediation: Understanding New Media." This concept encapsulates the idea of new media incorporating and refashioning older media forms, which is evident in how video game aesthetics are integrated into fine art in the project.

The narrative structure of this project is non-linear, shaped by the choices and actions of the participant. This characteristic allows for multiple interpretations and paths through the collection, each unique to the individual viewer. It embraces the decentralisation and non-linearity inherent to many digital experiences, including hypertext and interactive gaming. This approach challenges traditional linear narrative structures, inviting the viewer to play an active role in constructing the narrative, thereby expanding the scope of interpretation and engagement.

References: Deleuze, Gilles, and Felix Guattari. Consider their concept of the "rhizome," which represents a non-hierarchical, non-linear system that allows for multiple, non-preordained paths. This concept mirrors the narrative structure of this project.

Through its immersive video game interface, the project transforms the art-viewing experience into an embodied encounter. By inviting the viewer to navigate and interact with the work, it fosters a sense of agency and presence in the viewer, giving them an active role in their engagement with the art. This approach aligns with the concepts of interactive engagement and participatory culture, suggesting that art is not just something to be passively consumed, but an active experience that can be shaped by the viewer. The result is an immersive and autonomous experience where the viewer becomes a participant in the narrative and interpretation of the artwork.

References: Bourriaud, Nicholas. Explore his notion of "relational aesthetics," which emphasizes art's focus on human relations and their social context. The project actively engages the viewer, creating a space for these relations to flourish.

This project evolves traditional storytelling by adopting a text-based RPG format, where the narrative is dynamic and malleable based on the viewer’s choices and interactions. By including an AI character that the viewer can converse with, the project elevates the interaction from simply “viewing” to “dialoguing” with the artwork. This interactive narrative structure reframes the art-viewing experience as a lived, embodied experience, suggesting a shift from traditional static narratives to dynamic, interactive, and participatory narratives.

References: Bakhtin, Mikhail. Look into his concept of "dialogism," which highlights the ongoing dialogue that exists between a text and its audience. This idea resonates with the project's interactive nature.