Northumbria Research Link Citation: Nolan, Lucille Marie (2009) Vision science and the visual arts: an enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion. Doctoral thesis, Northumbria University. This version was downloaded from Northumbria Research Link: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/312/ Northumbria University has developed Northumbria Research Link (NRL) to enable users to access the University’s research output. Copyright © and moral rights for items on NRL are retained by the individual author(s) and/or other copyright owners. Single copies of full items can be reproduced, displayed or performed, and given to third parties in any format or medium for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge, provided the authors, title and full bibliographic details are given, as well as a hyperlink and/or URL to the original metadata page. The content must not be changed in any way. Full items must not be sold commercially in any format or medium without formal permission of the copyright holder. The full policy is available online: http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/policies.html VISION SCIENCE AND THE VISUAL ARTS: AN ENQUIRY INTO THE SCIENCE OF PERCEPTION AND THE ART OF IMMERSION LUCILLE MARIE NOLAN PhD 2008 VISION SCIENCE AND THE VISUAL ARTS: AN ENQUIRY INTO THE SCIENCE OF PERCEPTION AND THE ART OF IMMERSION LUCILLE MARIE NOLAN A thesis submitted in part fulfilment of the requirements of the University of Northumbria at Newcastle for the degree: Doctor of Philosophy Research undertaken in the School of Arts and Social Sciences March 2008 L M Nolan: Vision Science and the Visual Arts: An enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion ABSTRACT This research addresses questions surrounding two currently prominent visual art topics. The first revolves around the concept of immersion and perceptions of immersive art, the second concerns current interests in art and science and the practice of art and science collaboration. Current debates and theories of immersion revolve around technologically informed virtual models and interactive virtual art environments, however, the history of immersion as a creative medium has been traced to pre-technological, even pre-historical beginnings. In this study, a pre- technological concept of immersion per se is explored, and a new perceptual model of immersion is developed based on the scientific laws and principles of vision. This model is shown to encompass and a long history of immersive traditions and a type of contemporary art practice that until now was not recognised as an immersive art genre. Working at the interstices of visual immersive art and visual science disciplines, collaborative experimental environments are developed that embody both the concepts and definitions proposed in the thesis, and the scientific laws and principles on which they are founded. Pre-technological/visual and contemporary/virtual concepts are further distinguished by their respective scientific and technological alignments and by the types of perceptual phenomena they engender. It is shown that as a creative medium, immersion comprises scientifically informed visual and technologically informed virtual immersive sub-genres, which together provide a broader and more comprehensive account of historical and contemporary immersive art practice. i L M Nolan: Vision Science and the Visual Arts: An enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion List of Figures Fig. 1: Myron Krueger: Video Place (1974) Fig. 2: Early NASA HMD prototype (c.1978) Fig. 3: Modern HMD (c. 2002) Fig. 4: Morton Herlig’s Sensorama (c.1962) Fig. 5: VE participant with HMD and data-gloves Fig. 6: Char Davies: Osmose (1995) Fig. 7: Char Davies: Ephémère (1998) Fig. 8: CAVE: Computer Automated Virtual Environment (1992) Fig. 9: Immersive CAVE environment with multiple participants Fig. 10: Dan Sandin with stereoscopic glasses (c.1992) Fig. 11: Immersive CAVE installation: University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada (1994) Fig. 12: Maurice Benayoun: World Skin (1997) Fig. 13: Prehistoric cave paintings, Lascaux, France Fig. 14:The Battle of Sedan Panorama (1870-71) Fig. 15: Robert Burford: Leister Square Rotunda (c.1781) Fig. 16: Jeffrey Shaw: Place (1989) Fig. 17: James Turrell and Robert Irwin, University of California, US, 1968 Fig. 18: James Turrell: Afrum Proto (1968) Fig. 19: James Turrell: First Moment (2003) Fig. 20: Anne Veronica Janssens: Untitled (2003) Fig. 21: Olafur Eliasson: The Mediated Motion (2001-) Fig. 22: Olafur Eliasson: Your Colour Memory (2003) Fig. 23: James Turrell: Perceptual Cell (2003) Alan Gilchrist: Perceptual apparatus (2002) Fig. 24: James Turrell: Perceptual Cell (2003), Alan Gilchrist: Apparatus for presenting visual stimuli (1978) Fig. 25: Diagram showing division in immersive concepts and practices:1960-present Fig. 26: Diagram showing research process Fig. 27: Studies for a modular immersive environment (2001-2002) Fig. 28: MIE Prototype 1 (2002) Fig. 29: MIE prototype 1: Animation studies (tunnel concept/linear motion) Fig. 30: MIE Prototype 1: Full-scale projection studies Fig. 31: Floor Plan: MIE Prototype 2 Fig. 32: MIE Prototype 2 Scale model: 1:125 Fig. 33: MIE Prototype 2 animation stills Fig. 34: MIE2 full-scale aluminium framework Fig. 35: Claire Davies: Interlace (2003) Fig. 36: Encompassing the FOV Fig. 37: VE participants in Char Davies Osmose and at Brown University’s VisLab Fig. 38: Diagram showing actual level and inclined flight conditions Fig. 39: Diagram showing level and inclined flight conditions during flight simulation Fig. 40: The Haunted Swing illusion (c.1898) Fig. 41: Jennifer Steinkamp: Phase=Time (1999) Fig. 42: Bridget Riley: Fall (1963) Fig. 43: Akiyoshi Kitaoka: Peripheral drift illusion Fig. 44: Fred Bonato: Otokinetic drum apparatus (interior view) Fig. 45: Diagram of OMNIMAX cinema construction Fig. 46: Optokinetic drum: exterior view Fig. 47: Vection: Preliminary studies (2003) Fig. 48: Diagram showing peripheral and foveal visual range Fig. 49: Diagram of visual range aligned with distorted and focussed image areas ii L M Nolan: Vision Science and the Visual Arts: An enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion Fig. 50: Vection (2003) Floor plan and section Fig. 51: Vection: Scale Model Fig. 52: Vection: Preliminary animations (2003) Fig. 53: Vection: Full scale prototype (2003) Fig. 54: Screen door effect Fig. 55: Diagram of perceived frameworks experiment Fig. 56: Poggendorf Illusion Fig. 57: Kansas: Scale model (2003) Fig. 58: Kansas: Preliminary studies with floor projection (2003) Fig. 59: A vehicle mounted tripod Fig. 60: Still images of countryside footage Fig. 61: Still image of rural footage Fig. 62: Still image of city footage Fig. 63: Camera configurations and tripods Fig. 64: Kansas: Floor Plan/Section (2004) Fig. 65: AccuSway™ force plate Fig. 66: Experimental subject inside Kansas (2004) Fig. 67: Diagrams of typical balance patterns Fig. 68: Kansas: large aperture configuration Fig. 69: Interchangeable apertures for Kansas Fig. 70: Kansas Experiment: Installation view showing small and large aperture configurations Fig. 71: Kansas: Modular framework configuration for ECVP 2004 Fig. 72: Portable shipping containers for ECVP 2004 Fig. 73: Setting up at ECVP 2004 Fig. 74: Kansas installation at ECVP 2004, Budapest, Hungary. iii L M Nolan: Vision Science and the Visual Arts: An enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion List of Abbreviations of Technical Terms CAVE: Computer Automated Virtual Environment CUBE: A six-wall CAVE environment COP: Centre of Pressure ECVP: European Conference on Visual Perception FOV: Field of View ITQ: Immersive Tendencies Questionnaire MIE: Modular Immersive Environment NESTA: National Endowment for Science, Technology, and the Arts SOP: Sense of Presence PQ: Presence Questionnaire VE(s): Virtual Environment(s) VisLab: Virtual laboratory, Dept. of Psychology, Brown University, Rhode Island, US VR: Virtual Reality VRT: Virtual Reality Technology VSS: Vision Sciences Society iv L M Nolan: Vision Science and the Visual Arts: An enquiry into the science of perception and the art of immersion TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract………………….……...…………………………..………………….….……… i Table of Figures……….…..………………………………………………………...…… ii List of Abbreviations of Technical Terms……………………..…………………….. v Table of Contents………..……..………………….………………………..…………… vi Acknowledgements……….………………….……………………………..…………… x Declaration……….…………….…………………………...…….……………...….…… xi Chapter 1: Introduction Introduction………………………………………………………………..…..…………… 2 1.1 Personal Background…………………………………………..………………..…… 3 1.2 Background and Motivation for the Research 1.2.1 The art-science debate……………………………….……….…………….. 5 1.2.2 Immersion and immersive art……………………………………………….. 7 1.3 Problem Statement………………………………………….……………..….……… 11 1.4 Research Aims and Objectives……………………………….…….………………. 12 1.5 Premises, Claims, and Hypotheses……………….….…..………...….…………… 13 1.6 Chapter Outline…………………………………………….…..…..…………………. 15 1.7 Terms and Definitions……………………………………..………………………….. 18 Chapter 2: Context Introduction…………….…………..……….………………………………….………… 27 2.1 Virtual Immersion 2.1.1 A brief history…………………………………………………………………. 29 2.1.2 Contemporary methods and practices……………………………………… 32 HMD’s…………………………………….………………………………………. 33 Char Davies……………………………………………………………………… 37 CAVE…………………………………….………………………………………. 41 Maurice Benayoun…………………….………………………………………… 44 Daniel Sandin…………………….……………………………………………… 45 v

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