VIRTUAL MAZE 1.0 y 2.0 Dataset

VIRTUAL MAZE is an initiative to introduce Virtual Reality into the creative processes of Artistic Installations inspired by the Labyrinth. The origin of the labyrinth lies in the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. The labyrinth is shown as a unique place unlike any other space known until then. A space that delimits the visible and the invisible; between the apparent, the known and the hidden, which is no longer regulated by appearance. In this project, we will focus on this labyrinthine space as a creative trigger for the conception of art installations. Artistic interventions in spaces are a manifestation of contemporary art that emerged around the 1960s. At a certain point, art took a leap forward, moving from being contained within architectural elements to occupying the interstitial space, giving it new meaning. This is how we can consider artistic installations to have been born. This led to a breaking down of the boundaries of the work of art. However, there was a precursor prior to this date. In 1942, Marcel Duchamp proposed colonising the space of the First Papers of Surrealism exhibition with a labyrinthine structure of ropes. The recent emergence of virtual reality (VR) as a spatial immersion mechanism represents a new milestone in art installations in particular. The ephemeral nature of these installations, generally designed to be physically realised and then disappear after a period of time, means that, paradoxically, they can remain unchanged through VR. The few examples we can find of art installations designed and created in VR are excessively contemplative and demonstrative. They generally do not feature routes associated with labyrinthine situations that require a more proactive way of interacting with the environment. We will study and analyse how virtual matter should be conceived so that these labyrinths can be conceived as an immersive installation in which (virtual) matter, in this case, can lead us through a space that is theoretically immaterial. The datasets created throughout the research are available here, including those packaged in Unreal Engine, so that the results obtained can be replicated.