From Remote to Embodied Sensing: New Perspectives for Virtual Museums and Archaeological Landscape Communication

Abstract

Digital technologies can have a revolutionary impact in the cultural heritage domain, not only in documentation and representation but also in communication and in the emerging field of digital ecosystems. Virtual environments allow the users to learn from experience, joining sensorimotor and interpretative faculties, perceiving, acting and adapting to changing circumstances, even if in contexts that are no longer (or not yet) materially accessible today. The challenge consists in the breadth of the field and the need to bring together an exceptional spectrum of disciplines, from cognitive science and psychology to history, archaeology, art, geography, computer sciences. Despite the exciting perspectives opened in education and in terms of social and economic growth, research in the domain of Virtual Museums has not reached a sufficient level of maturity, such as Cinema or Game sectors. There is still a disconnection between the research, that develops tools with little interest in their wide application, and the industry, that builds ten-year plans addressing the market. Virtual museums, the main focus of this contribution, have reached an important advancement but still today much of the research aims at technological innovation rather than at genuine culture transmission. Given the need of enhancing the emotional and cognitive impact of virtual museums, some criteria and good practices will be discussed, dealing with engaging storytelling, embodiment, novel solutions in the interaction design and in the integration of media. The theoretical discussion will be exemplified through concrete case studies, among which the Tiber Valley Virtual Museum, to give more evidence and a better clarification.