This article is the eighth in a series focusing on the Architecture of the Metaverse. ArchDaily has collaborated with John Marx, AIA, the founding design principal and Chief Artistic Officer of Form4 Architecture, to bring you monthly articles that seek to define the Metaverse, convey the potential of this new realm as well as understand its constraints. In this feature, architect John Marx interviews Heather Gallagher, an international expert in transformative events and the experience economy and former Head of Technology at Burning Man.
John Marx: With your background in immersive technology and a long tech career, how have you witnessed the evolution of the Metaverse?
Heather Gallagher: Neal Stephenson, a popular science fiction author, introduced the concept of the “metaverse” in his 1992 book “Snowcrash.” It was envisioned as a vast, immersive virtual reality space where people interact with each other and digital environments in an embodied and tangible manner. The tech and gaming industries quickly adopted the term to describe all shared digital spaces that exist parallel to the physical world. The internet, or the World Wide Web as it was called, was barely nascent then, but the limited chat platforms and multiplayer text-based games of that era could be considered the initial access points to the Metaverse.
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How AI Will Make Everyone a Better Designer: For Better or WorseYears later, online games evolved into robust graphic-based worlds, some featuring digital world-building capabilities for players. Second Life by Linden Labs and Philip Rosedale was a pioneer when it launched to the public in 2003. Soon it had a community, gathering spaces, events, digital goods, a marketplace, and a currency. It set the stage for massively multiplayer online platforms with user-generated games and experiences like Roblox a few years later, and Minecraft a few years after that.
Even shooter games like Fortnite, released in 2017, have expanded their gameplay to include spaces for socializing, events, and world-building. Players can gather in between missions or instead of them. In 2019, Fortnite hosted a groundbreaking virtual concert by DJ Marshmello, drawing a record 10.7 million players. Following this, Travis Scott's concert became even more popular early in the pandemic, attracting nearly 46 million attendees.
In the last five years, Metaverse interactions have moved beyond traditional 2D screens. Consumers are now exploring digital worlds using virtual reality headsets and integrating digital content into real-world environments through augmented reality. Most recently, as the digital and physical worlds continue to converge, we’re sharing experiences of the Metaverse through human-scale digital environments. These are virtual spaces that match the scale and proportions of the physical world, allowing groups of users to experience digital content as if it were part of their real-world surroundings. Examples are the Illuminarium venues, designed by the Rockwell Group, which are reprogrammable immersive theaters in Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Toronto.
JM: Considering your recent focus on immersive entertainment, could you explain what that is and its connection to the Metaverse?
HG: The term ‘immersive’ has become popular recently, even becoming a marketing buzzword. Immersive entertainment is when the users' senses are deeply engaged and they enter a world where story content surrounds them. The world can be created using physical or digital scenic elements, sets, props, and/or actors. The content takes the form of art exhibitions, theatre, escape rooms, theme park attractions, dining, concerts, haunted houses, audio scapes, virtual reality, augmented reality, or any combination. Many forms of immersive entertainment incorporate shared digital environments that blend virtual content with real-world interactions. These environments are a key aspect of the Metaverse. They are part of the broader ecosystem of interconnected digital experiences.
JM: Could you highlight some examples of the use of immersive digital environments and their impact?
HG: The most well-known are the immersive Van Gogh shows that have been hugely successful. There were six different exhibitions created by six different producers that were touring the globe simultaneously. Following in their footsteps have been showcases for old masters ranging from Monet to Michaelangelo, alongside modern art productions such as “Street Art Alive” and “The World of Banksy.” There are also ‘edutainment’ experiences like National Geographic’s “Beyond King Tut” and fan experiences such as “Marvel Avengers S.T.A.T.I.O.N.” or “Harry Potter: The Exhibition” which included digital environments as part of a larger exhibition.
Digital content is often presented as a constantly looping movie, on the walls, floor, and occasionally the ceiling. Sometimes, the content is interactive. The interactivity can take various forms. In “Harry Potter: The Exhibition” guests scanned an RFID bracelet as they entered a room. Then their names were ‘magically’ added to a massive digital version of the Marauder’s Map on the surrounding walls.
A common form of interactivity is using hidden motion sensors to let guests affect the digital content directly. I saw a particularly charming example of this at Frameless, an immersive art experience in London. We were surrounded by digital petals from an impressionist artwork and as our feet moved, we ‘kicked’ the petals just as we might have scattered leaves while walking on a sidewalk. It’s fun to watch ‘kids’ of all ages shuffling and dashing around. One couple even broke into an impromptu partner dance and swirled their way across the room surrounded by fluttering petals, ending with a dip, a quick kiss, and a round of applause from a room of strangers.
Expect to see immersive digital content becoming increasingly interactive as advancements are made in motion and bio-sensor technologies, AI-generated voice and video content, voice, facial, and emotion recognition, game engines, and show control software.
Another use of immersive digital environments is the recent innovation in filmmaking where virtual sets and scenery are combined with limited physical sets and props to craft major motion pictures and episodic shows. The breakthrough example was The Volume in Manhattan Beach, used for the production of The Mandalorian and various Star Wars and Marvel projects. These environments are also being used in live-stream production, and there are prosumer models small enough to fit inside a home or office.
Digital environments offer unlimited content possibilities and content is often cheaper to produce than traditional filmmaking. They enable rapid content updates and facilitate portable, replicable touring shows. As venues, they provide a novel platform for shared immersive experiences.
JM: Where do these digital experiences typically take place? What kind of venues host them?
HG: Producers frequently create temporary digital environments in empty event spaces, retail, or warehouses. These can be one section of multi-room exhibitions or be the main venue and delivery mechanism for an entire show. Such environments are featured in temporary museum exhibitions like TeamLab at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco or semi-permanent installations like Superblue in Miami.
With the rise of immersive digital experiences, new permanent venues are being designed and constructed to showcase them. Examples are the box-shaped Illuminariums which I mentioned previously, and spherical venues like the new 17,000-seat mega-venue, Sphere in Las Vegas, and two new 1,700-person venues called Cosm that are currently being constructed in Dallas and Los Angeles.
For the groundbreaking immersive digital concert “ABBA Voyage”, STUFISH Entertainment Architects created the 3,000-capacity ABBA Arena which was can be deconstructed into a ‘flat pack’ design. This will allow the venue to tour in an eco-friendly manner when it eventually leaves London. That might not be for a while, as the show was just extended for the fourth time through January 2025. Since it opened in May of 2022, it has been incredibly popular, and for good reason. It’s been one of my favorite immersive experiences and is one of my top five concert experiences of all time.
The original four members of ABBA, now in their 70s, were recorded in audio and motion capture while performing the concert in a studio a few years ago. Their performances were recreated virtually by animators at Industrial Light and Magic but the band’s ‘ABBAtars’ were visualized as they looked in their heyday in 1979. The execution of the animated performances, and the immersive concert effects made possible by the bespoke arena, are stunning and flawless. Guests instantly believe the illusion and are transported through time for a phenomenal concert that seamlessly and cleverly blends live and virtual performances.
JM: If “ABBA Voyage” is one of your favorites so far, is there an immersive digital experience that you are looking forward to?
HG: I’m a bit opportunistic. To keep current on industry research, I try to see every immersive entertainment experience that I can, digital or otherwise, when I’m at home in San Francisco or traveling. I’ve seen hundreds of immersive experiences. One that I am particularly keen to see is “Our Ocean, Our Future” by Hidden Worlds Entertainment. It’s an award-winning, United Nations-accredited immersive dining experience featuring an ocean-positive menu that is served inside a digital environment. While the courses are served a story unfolds surrounding the guests in a narrative that is both entertaining and educational about the challenges facing our oceans. Guests are so moved by the experience that many participate in later beach cleanup projects. It’s great to see immersive entertainment used to make a positive impact. After two successful temporary runs, the group will soon open a permanent location in Miami. That is high on my list for sure.
JM: From an architectural standpoint, what should be considered when creating spaces for these human-scale metaverse experiences?
HG: From a practical perspective, the flexibility of the space is beneficial. It might host a standing immersive art exhibition one night and a seated corporate event the next. There may be pop-up dining, educational trips, or private events using the same digital backdrop, with different physical furnishings.
Visibility of the digital displays, whether projection-based or OLED, is essential and each has unique complexities. Tech equipment like projectors, screens, speakers, cables, and sensors need to be hidden but remain accessible for repairs or replacement. For permanent installations, there may be faux walls with small holes cut out for projectors, or you’ll see clever use of mirrored surfaces or artwork to try to blend the infrastructure into the illusion. The technical infrastructure and related climate control systems required for a massive venue like Sphere are stupendous. Infrastructure and venue requirements will continue to get more complex as haptics, motion sets, misting systems, and even indoor person-sized drone shows are added to enhance immersive digital experiences.
Digital immersive spaces typically feature virtual embellishments, so the physical environment needs to be compelling and elegant to complement the range of experiences that may be showcased. However, the opposite can apply, like the former Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank in NYC which is now the Hall des Lumieres, where projection mapping integrates the architecture into the art and experience.
From a narrative perspective architecture can become a part of the story. Immersive experiences often incorporate portals as transition elements to help visitors disconnect from their usual environment and transition into the new story world. It’s also helpful to have a space for decompression and integration after the experience. By designing entrances and exits supporting this journey and maintaining ‘the illusion’, architects can contribute to the immersion experience.
JM: How have these immersive digital experiences impacted cultural aspects like art, entertainment, and social gatherings?
HG: Immersive digital experiences bring historic art, literature, and museum exhibits to a younger, tech-savvy audience in an exciting and relatable format. They also revitalize the content for existing audiences, albeit sometimes with mixed reviews. It’s still ‘good art’ though since it evokes emotions, opinions, contemplation, and conversation.
For entertainment creators, these environments offer dynamic new tools for storytelling and deepening actor experiences. Studios can save time, space, and resources by not physically constructing every set, character, and prop. This production technique also speeds up content creation to satisfy the constant demand for new stories.
Digital environments can offer extraordinary immersive fan experiences where guests can interact with beloved fantastical worlds and characters, like stepping into a favorite movie, show, or game. This deepens the connection to the content, opens up new narrative branches, and expands revenue opportunities for established IPs.
Through these digital environments, the Metaverse has been expanded to a human scale and unleashed into our human spaces. It’s no longer a parallel make-believe universe, but a real one where physical and digital worlds are being intertwined to create exhilarating new stories and intensified experiences. We are only just beginning to explore forms of gathering, shared virtual visits to distant places, collaboration capabilities, and the astonishing virtual worlds we can inhabit together.
Heather Gallagher, a former corporate IT consultant with a Master’s in Computer Science, propelled herself to the forefront of immersive entertainment. Heather’s path includes 17 years as the head of technology and design for Burning Man. She moved on to pioneer experiences in immersive augmented reality and advise on virtual reality projects. Heather advised, explored, and reported on all nine virtual Burning Man metaverses in 2020. Notably, she debuted a monumental immersive art experience on the Las Vegas Strip and recently, has been focusing on immersive music entertainment. Known for her industry insights, dynamic presence, and engaging storytelling, Heather makes a sparkling impact on experiential entertainment.
The Metaverse Unleashed: The Rise of Human-Scale Digital Venues is written by architect John Marx, AIA, the founding design principal and Chief Artistic Officer of Form4 Architecture, an award-winning San Francisco-based firm that designs prominent buildings, campuses, and interiors for Bay Area tech companies such as Google and Facebook, laboratories for life-science clients, and workplaces for numerous other companies. In 2000-2007, Marx taught a course on the topic of placemaking in cyberspace at the University of California, Berkley, and in 2020 he designed his first project in the Metaverse for Burning Man: The Museum of No Spectators. The following year, John Marx led a design team charged with creating a $500B portal to the Metaverse.
