HELIA RAFIE
NAIP
2022
Mixed Media, VR Game, Performance, Interactive Installation
ISTA, the International Space-Time Agency, is an immersive art installation imitating a fake space exploration agency. It serves as a satirical parody of corporate entities. Picture a space agency detached from reality, where laws of physics don’t apply. As humans, our perception is limited to three dimensions. However, within this whimsical setting, participants are offered a departure from this norm. They are welcomed to embark on a voyage into the fourth dimension, an experience facilitated through an engaging VR game. Where it draws inspiration from science fiction and corporate dystopian futures, merging art, technology, and corporate structures.
This project encompasses various mediums, including films, 3D models, animations, a VR game created in Unreal Engine, soundtracks, a physical "Collision Pod, and performative elements," created in collaboration with Radina Kordova. These components form an interactive installation where performers take on the roles of doctors and scientists.
This collaborative project features artist Radina Kordova and art history students from RUG University, including Daphne Blanken, Rosanne Knol, and Mia Kirilova.
The “ collision hub" of the ISTA is a semi-circular structure made of steel that serves as a central element in the project. It has both physical and virtual components, appearing in both the real-world booth and the virtual reality (VR) experience. The hub is not only a structural feature but also a symbolic representation of the transition from three-dimensional space to the fourth dimension. It provides continuity and a visual connection between the physical and virtual aspects of the project, enhancing the overall immersive and narrative quality of the experience for participants.
ISTA is not your typical space exploration endeavour. It takes the form of a performative art installation, where participants are the center of the experience. Here the participants go through a series of tests, mirroring the routines and assessments of a space agency, complete with medical evaluations, and an eventual voyage into a simulated fourth-dimensional realm.
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A central element of the ISTA project is a virtual reality (VR) game called "The Dimension Program." This VR experience serves as a portal to the fourth dimension, providing an artistic interpretation of a concept typically beyond human perception. Through this virtual journey, participants explore a world where the laws of physics take on unfamiliar forms.
