If we’re to believe the experts, in the future we’ll live in blended worlds thanks to mixed reality technology. Reflecting on the recent launch of Maxim Zhestkov’s new virtual reality art project at the Varjo HQ, we explore what that will mean for our experience of space.
Maxim Zhestkov and Jussi Mäkinen know a thing or two about virtual worlds. The former, a London-based artist, was dabbling in digital space long before anyone had heard of an NFT or ChatGPT, while the latter, a Helsinki-based Nokia alum, was one of the first employees at Varjo, producer of human-eye resolution VR/AR/XR headsets. The pair are sitting in Varjo’s Helsinki HQ for the pre-launch of Modules, Zhestkov’s latest work in the digital realm. It’s basically an explorable ‘gallery’ whose different rooms feature different Zhestkov creations – a sphere impossibly floating from one wall to another before disappearing into its surface, an elevated balance-beam pathway that will turn an acrophobic’s recent lunch into an unwelcome dessert. Paired with Zhestkov’s bespoke soundtrack and audio tour, it’s an immersive journey in virtual reality (VR), but it’s the mixed reality (MR) version that points to the future of spatial experiences.
Cover and above: Maxim Zhestkov’s Modules is basically explorable ‘gallery’ whose different rooms feature different Zhestkov creations.
VR is a stepping stone to MR
In MR, physical and virtual objects can co-exist and interact in real time, meaning you can still see the real environment around you and the other people in it. (During the pre-launch of Modules, for instance, one of those aforementioned spheres appeared from the ceiling of the Varjo HQ.) This layered experience, which some believe presents an optimal channel for improving customer experiences in retail, removes an oft-referenced awkward factor of using VR today – being the one wearing the headset in the middle of a room, grasping at ‘nothing’ while onlookers giggle. But that won’t even be an issue by 2030-40 – the time Mäkinen believes we’ll all be wearing MR glasses. He sees VR as a stepping stone: ‘The future is more in MR,’ he says, ‘but you have to perfect VR to get there.’
And for now, that’s how most people will experience Modules. Zhestkov began the self-initiated project a few years ago, but it draws from his 30-plus years as a computerphile, his architecture studies and a youth spent in a remote city without access to galleries and museums. ‘I started to explore where the worlds of architecture, sculpture and sound could collide and connect,’ he says. Initially turned down by galleries and curators once they realized his work was not ‘real’ art, Zhestkov later juggled his time between commercial commissions for big brands like Playstation, Google, BMW, Gucci, Chanel and Adidas, and developing his own works of art. ‘I felt and still feel that these technologies will change the way we experience art and architecture. It’s possible to create things that nobody’s ever seen, as if they were flowers or organisms from other worlds. We probably won’t be able to visit different planets – not even Elon Musk – but we can try to crack the code of reality.’ This translates to Zhestkov crafting his own set of physical rules and then pushing them to the limit of what’s possible. And since what’s possible will naturally change over time, Modules is an ever-evolving project he plans to develop throughout his lifetime, adding new iterations every six months. ‘No update? I’m dead. It’s a crazy commitment, but because of how quickly technologies like ChatGPT, Midjourney and text to video are evolving, we can’t imagine what will be possible in a year from now.’
‘I felt and still feel that these technologies [VR and MR] will change the way we experience art and architecture,’ says Zhestkov.
New realities for design(ing)
Varjo is already changing reality with the world’s top automobile manufacturers – they can create digital twins of the interiors and exteriors of new models, and designers can collaborate in the virtual world to tweak details. This drastically speeds up the process, saving time and money and generating less physical waste: ‘They can now do what they did in four days in four hours,’ says Mäkinen. Meanwhile, in the building sector, projects like London's new Crossrail project show how MR – which allows construction workers to access digital models and data in real time – can improve communication, enhance collaboration and reduce errors. Mäkinen says that the professional market is paving the way for the consumer market. ‘Once the car makers can see the finest details – like the stitching on the leather – then we know it’s ready.’
But, he adds, such applications don’t ask fundamental questions about the state of reality. To get these kinds of insights, Mäkinen believes technology companies need to collaborate with digital artists to understand the medium. ‘We need to inspire the future of architecture, where the boundaries of physical reality no longer limit you,’ he says. By offering Varjo’s technology to the likes of Zhestkov, the team can get feedback on what can be improved. ‘We want to achieve MR better than anyone else. One day you won’t even know what’s real.’
Modules is an ever-evolving project that Zhestkov plans to develop throughout his lifetime.
Expanded horizons
How will this (mis)perception alter our experience of the places in which we live? With an enthusiasm that will have believers prostrating and cynics scoffing, Zhestkov speaks of a ‘wonderful’ future in which ‘we can live in the middle of nowhere without windows, in a small 3 x 3-m room’, but believe we see a spacious home. The thought echoes the words of Space Popular cofounder Fredrik Hellberg in FRAME 146: ‘When we increasingly have access to virtual devices, our minds can be in very big space while our bodies are in quite small spaces.’ Zhestkov is convinced that in around 15 years, the human-eye resolution available through Varjo headsets will be accessible all the time, in real time. ‘My wife loves Leonardo DiCaprio,’ he says. ‘In the future, she could even decide that she wants me to look like him. Or we could be sitting here and someone on the chair next to me could be a completely fictional character, an avatar.’
Again, Space Popular imagines something similar. In its Venn Room project, ‘a virtual visitor would bring their surroundings along with them. Your home and theirs will overlap, and together you will rearrange the furniture so that you get to sit next to them on the couch or cook dinner together,’ says cofounder Lara Lesmes. What’s more, we could also see spatial media draped over physical environments to achieve virtual redecoration. ‘If we’re tired of our old armchair,’ says Hellberg, ‘we could change the way it looks. Or we could change it depending on who’s visiting or what day it is. Hopefully this speaks to a healthier approach to physical things in general, which is obviously one of the biggest sticking points when solving the climate emergency.’
Zhestkov says that the more he dives into these ideas, ‘the less I believe we live in the real reality’. When he speaks like this – which he often does – he’d have you believe we’re on the cusp of finding out we’re in The Matrix. It’s easy to imagine him waiting for the day he can turn around and say: ‘I told you so.’
Modules is accessible for free on Steam and Meta Quest 2. For those without VR glasses, the project can be viewed on a regular desktop computer and screen.
