Dornob | Design Ideas Daily

Mixed Reality: Wall Projections Transform Tiny Apartments

Posted: 14 Jun 2014 08:46 AM PDT

Virtual Reality Apartment 1

Would the illusion of a beautiful garden just beyond the windowless walls of your tiny 100-square-foot apartment help you feel less confined? Many experts believe that in the future, people will have to adapt to much smaller and less luxurious living spaces, which could lead to a depressing feeling of imprisonment. The ‘Mixed Reality Living Spaces‘ project by Bernardo Schorr envisions this new way of life, and how technology could help us cope.

Virtual Reality Apartments 2

A tiny space constantly transforms throughout the day, with changing wallpaper, simulated furniture, and windows that shift the setting of the apartment from a bustling college campus to a stately wooded neighborhood. The branches shift in the breeze, cars pass by on the streets and people mill around. At night, a city skyline appears, giving the room the feel of an urban loft – yet none of it is real.

Virtual Reality 3

Virtual Reality Apartments 4

Imagined as a “utopian solution for a dystopian scenario,” Schorr’s project uses digital technology to immerse occupants in environments that feel totally different, even though they remain in the same small, dark room the entire time. The space is presented as different rooms depending on the occupant’s needs throughout the day, including a bedroom, library, office and kitchen.

Virtual Reality Apartments 5

A simple set of transforming furniture augments the projections, unfolding and assembling in various ways to produce a bench, bed, lounger, desk or table for two. While advancements in digital tech could make the faux surroundings feel very real, would they be convincing enough to make us forget that we don’t actually have any windows in our homes? Let’s hope we never have to find out.