THURSDAY, APRIL 19TH
CONEY ISLAND MUSEUM, 7:30 PM, (Lecture/Performance) – $7
Erkki Huhtamo: “Mareorama Resurrected”
Experience a century-old immersive virtual reality – a moving panorama, the new media performance of its time – in this highly unusual “illustrated lecture” by Erkki Huhtamo. Performed throughout the 1800s, moving panoramas were among the most popular entertainment of the 19th century.
In this poetic lecture-demonstration, scholar and media archeologist Erkki Huhtamo draws on his research into moving panoramas and dioramas to discuss various historical apparata that laid the groundwork for 20th and 21st century immersive applications – including those created now by game designers and media artists.
The particular focus of this presentation will be on the Mareorama, a huge multi-sensory spectacle created by Hugo d’Alesi and his team for the Universal Exposition of 1900 in Paris. Drawing from high-resolution scans and the original piano music composed for the Mareorama by Henri Kowalski, Huhtamo reconstructs several sequences from this simulated sea voyage on the Mediterranean to live piano accompaniment.
See a video clip of this performance by clicking here.