The document discusses the use of virtual reality (VR) to create an immersive experience based on the artwork 'Singapore River with Thomson's Bridge' from the 1850s, presented by Merlin Cheng at the URECA conference. It explores how VR can enhance engagement and understanding of historical art within museums, allowing visitors to actively participate in the learning process. The presentation includes information on VR technology, development stages, and potential applications for educational improvement in cultural heritage contexts.

1. Virtual Reality:
Visualizing an 1850s Singapore River Artwork
Presented by Merlin
Cheng Shao Meng (Merlin)
School of Art, Design and Media
25 September 2019, Wednesday
12pm – 1.30pm session 15C,
The Influence of Media & The Media of Influence
URECA
Undergraduate Research Programme
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH – URECA
24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
Research Questions:
How can immersive media (specifically virtual reality)
be used in an art and cultural heritage museum?
What are the advantages of doing so?
Keywords:
• Virtual Reality
• Immersive Digital Environment
• Museography
• Singapore River
• Singapore History
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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
INTRODUCTION
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What is it?
'Singapore River with Thomson's Bridge',
lithograph, circa 1850s, collection of National
Museum of Singapore
An immersive digital environment/virtual reality app based on
“Singapore River with Thomson’s Bridge”
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Screenshot from the Singapore River 1850s VR app

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
The installation booth is made up of
• Oculus Go VR headset
• PC port
• Replica paintings that inspired the
environment
This is done in commemoration of
Singapore Bicentennial, with support from
the National Museum of Singapore.
Photo of the installation booth during the
ADM Show 2019 (May 2019)
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What is it?

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
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Photos of the installation booth during the ADM Show 2019 (May 2019)

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
What is Virtual Reality?
“An artificial environment which is experienced through
sensory stimuli (as sights and sounds) provided by a computer
and in which one’s actions partially determine what happens in
the environment.”
- merriam-webster.com
“A computer-generated digital environment that can be
experienced and interacted with as if that environment were real.”
- Jason Jerald, The VR Book: Human-Centered Design for Virtual Reality (2015)
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Types of (Consumer) VR Headsets
Standalone Tethered Mobile
Examples:
• Oculus Go
• Oculus Quest
• Mirage Solo
• Vive Focus
Examples:
• Google Cardboard
• Plastic VR viewers
• Samsung Gear VR
Examples:
• Vive Pro
• Oculus Rift S
• Steam Index
• Pimax VR
• PlayStation VR
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VR AS A MEDIA OF INFLUENCE
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In today’s digital and social age, visiting a museum is no longer a
passive experience where visitors are “given” information in a
static environment, but an interactive engagement of the
senses and the mind, where visitors are active participants in the
creative and learning process.
Foreword,
(Re)Presenting Histories: Experiences & Perspectives
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Angelita Teo
Museum Ex-Director
National Museum of Singapore

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The Night Café
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What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?

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Art Plunge
What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
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What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?
Google Expedition VR

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24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
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What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?
The VR Museum of Fine Art

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The Kremer Collection VR Museum
What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?

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The Museum of ThroughView
What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?

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Facebook post by ACM, Dec 2015 Photo of a boy trying out the VR app in the Tang Shipwreck
Gallery, photo taken in 2017
What are some similar VR apps
that has been done?

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The Concept
Imagined as an installation next to the artworks for people to “go
into” the painting.
• Engages & inspires museum visitors
• Learn more about our history/art history
• Learn how life was like during colonial time period
Photos of the artworks in the National Museum of Singapore’s Singapore History Gallery.
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CREATING A BELIEVABLE WORLD
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Video Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bM42VmdtHRo&

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What is the focus?
The VR app focuses on the common people living during 1850s.
Overhead screenshot of the environment inside the VR app
Character’s dialogues are based on the historical context and events that
occur during that time period.
Characters, objects and buildings are modelled based on historical sources.
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Sketch titled ‘Singapore - Un Policeman’,
late-19th to early-20th century, collection
of National Museum of Singapore
Screenshot of the 3D model. Modelling &
animation was done using Autodesk Maya
and Mixamo.
Development of the app
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Present-day map of Singapore River from Google Map
1846 map of Singapore River, zoomed in, image
from National Archives of Singapore
1862 map of Singapore River, zoomed in, image
from National Archives of Singapore

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Different artworks are used to fill in the gap that the main painting could not

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'Sincapour', National Museum of Singapore
1830, by Edmond-Francois Paris, Aquatint/Print, H22.8 x W32.4cm

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View of the Singapore River and settlement from Government Hill
National Museum of Singapore

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'Le Port Interieur, à Singapour' (Interior of the harbour of Singapore)
National Museum of Singapore, Late 1860s, artist unknown, Wood Engraving/
Print, L:26.5 x W:16.8

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Screenshots of the app during development inside Unreal Engine 4.
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A set of screenshots of the app during development taken inside Oculus Go.
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A set of screenshots taken within the final
version of the VR app, the one on bottom
right is of the PC port
Final version of the app
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PRESENTING TO THE PUBLIC
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Beta demo of the app taken during URECA Poster presentation (Mar 2019)
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A set of photos taken during the ADM Show 2019 (May 2019)
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A set of photos taken during a community event roadshow at HeartbeatBedok on Sept 2019
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More photos of people trying out the VR
headset and the PC port during the respective
public showcase
Feedback & Future Improvements:
Useful as a teaching tool, so it has
potential in a classroom setting as well.
Original languages & dialects
(with subtitle), more animations
(e.g. walking or carrying sandbags)
would add to the realism.
Looking at how different age groups
interact with VR.
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CONCLUSION
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Learning Points:
Q: How can immersive media (specifically virtual reality) be used in an art and
cultural heritage museum? What are the advantages of doing so?
VR can be used to increase engagement and
understanding of the artwork/artefacts, giving
visitors additional context.
Poster of the project done for the
ADM Show 2019
Possible issues:
• Headset integration with exhibition’s design,
• Motion sickness and comfort level,
• Solo experience
The methodology for this VR prototype can also
be applied to other artworks in a museum.
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38. Virtual Reality:
Visualizing an 1850s Singapore River Artwork
Cheng Shao Meng (Merlin)
School of Art, Design and Media
25 September 2019, Wednesday
12pm – 1.30pm session 15C,
The Influence of Media & The Media of Influence
URECA
Undergraduate Research Programme
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH – URECA
24-25 SEPTEMBER 2019 | 9am – 8pm | The Arc
THANK YOU
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