Doctoral Thesis
The research presented here deals with studying the perception of architectural space mediated by virtual immersion digital technology. At the same time, it seeks to understand how immersive technologies and plurality, and replicability of archives has been altering the way we design and, mainly, the way we relate to build spaces, especially pre-existing spaces (spaces whose original constructive marks exist and are recognized by the public). According to the concept of Spatial Empathy (LASC/UFRJ), Ambiences and Memory, we extend this issue to the relationship between people and their surrounding space as well as between people and other people. In an increasingly fast-paced and technological age, supported by networks and data, it is usual to face hybrid experiences which require devices to store files and impel us to build storage bases in remote servers - the clouds, that is, turning the information that suits us remote. As a result, the accumulation of files allows us to freely access, but not without consequences, information that will stay accessible in the future, keeping a past to remember or forget. Thus, this research seeks to expand the questions about the data archiving and memory exploration process, contributing to rethinking the idea of digital capture of records, models and storage in the cloud, and promoting a face-to-face and immersive experience in a "meeting" of real space with digital space. To achieve the desired results, a case study was carried out in Quinta da Boa Vista, the neighbourhood of São Cristóvão - RJ, specifically at the Jardim Terraço and the front part of the National Museum of Rio de Janeiro (Paço de São Cristóvão), which belongs to UFRJ and burned down in 2018. The study consisted of an experience in the real space, followed by a virtual immersion in the same places. The ruined state of the building was not disclosed to the general public and now, in a renovated state, it will no longer reveal traces of this fire in the entrance hall. However, the research created an archive of these spaces through 360º photography of the renovated gardens and facade and the entrance hall still with visible traces of the fire. The images allowed the creation of an interactive and immersive virtual tour (enabled by the use of virtual reality glasses - VR) bringing up the manipulation of the concepts reverberated in this thesis: the role of archives, clouds, and experience. Informants with a professional profile with an emphasis on architecture were chosen, such as architects, researchers, professors of architecture and urban planning, and related areas, such as artists, musicians, historians, among other professions, who had experienced the National Museum building in previous times, but did not follow its revitalization process. The informants were also interviewed, through structured questions, on their reactions and perceptions on the immersive experience. Despite the demanding theme from the point of view of Computer Science, the interest of this thesis was not to delve into the configurative character of systems and networks, but rather to show how the replication files of the real object interfere with or support the human experience. Finally, the thesis intends to contribute with reverberations for a design practice and possibly teaching in architecture, in favor of the perceptible experience and quality of life. The research showed that there is a change in spatial perception when mediated by immersive devices, but that the role of these devices is increasingly essential to contemporary life. With the hypothesis confirmed by the proposed experiment, we observed a reinforcement in the value of the simulation archive; it can be an archive and at the same time a Place of Memory, and should be protected, storing information that can be changed at a given moment, reinforcing the temporal value of the archive. It is necessary to value the initial experience without filters, without masks, without devices, so that we can access essences of perceptions with the devices. Architecture is, in essence, to welcome the Other, the first shelter; it is necessary to recognize, understand and value the Other, to perceive it in such a way that the work is useful to it.
THESIS LINK
Date: 05/06/2025
Person
- Cristiane Rose de Siqueira Duarte
- Ethel Pinheiro Santana [contributor]
- Fabiola do Valle Zonno
- Jorge Alfonso Astorga Garro [author]
- Maíra Machado Martins
- Wilson Florio
ResearchLine
- Culture, Landscape and Built Environment
Course
- Doctor of Architecture PROARQ