In October 2021, Facebook announced its rebrand to ‘Meta’, a term which set off a flurry of interest and discussion around metaverses and virtual worlds alike. Suddenly, we saw artists, auction houses, and giant tech companies start to explore and develop in this space. Even fashion brands have taken on ‘the metaverse’ with its recent Metaverse Fashion Week with the likes of DKNY, Dolce & Gabbana, and Tommy Hilfiger turning to developing ‘meta’ products.
A Brief Primer in the ‘Metaverse’
But what is a ‘metaverse'? The way the term is used often implies that it is a singular entity but the word refers to a host of virtual worlds often encased in blockchain technology. But in truth, this ‘emerging’ space is simply a rehash of a concept that has been around for a long time. For example, it was 1992 when the term ‘metaverse’ first appeared in Neal Stephenson’s book Snow Crash. Meanwhile, the idea of the computer simulated virtual world has been around since 1978 where MUD (Multi-User Dungeon) was developed by Roy Trubshaw and Richard Bartle at the University of Essex, UK, which soon became the foundational code for other virtual worlds.
Virtual worlds or metaverses offer users the ability to create a virtual self and explore a digital space. It is also common that users can interact with other players in a form of open-ended game. For example, Second Life is an online game where players can create a digital self and build and develop virtual property and it is often used as a virtual space for conferences, events and virtual hangouts.
How are Museums using Virtual Spaces?
Virtual spaces offer a variety of opportunities for museums. This was particularly resonant during the pandemic where physical spaces were no longer available and cultural institutions had to think more creatively about how to engage with their audiences.
One popular example in the US and UK during 2020 was Animal Crossing, an open-ended and interactive game by Nintendo that hit headlines as many flocked to the online game as a source of escapism during lockdown. Similarly, museums such as the Getty Museum, the New York Metropolitan Museum, and the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford took to the game as a way to encourage players to engage with their collections whilst the physical spaces were closed to the public.
These museums have engaged with virtual worlds as a way to counteract the lack of physical space and, although much of the world is living in some sort of ‘post-pandemic’ society, the use of virtual worlds (and ‘metaverses’) can continue to encourage engagement with the collection in new ways.
Another case is the Serpentine Galleries, UK, who partnered with the virtual game Fortnite to produce an online and interactive version of their KAWS exhibition. Whilst the virtual show did not go down well with art critics, comments from Fortnite players indicate that this partnership successfully engaged new audiences in the artist who might not have otherwise gone to the physical show, as described by this article on Artnet. Therefore, these online spaces provide new ways to engage with museum collections, as well as offer different kinds of audiences.
The Key Takeaway
Metaverses are the vehicle for experimentation in the web3 ecosystem. These digital spaces provide a way for us to experience NFTs in the digital environment, explore different ways of presenting collections, and potentially reach new audiences.
