Exhibbit Online 3D Virtual Gallery Tour

 

Exhibbit is an online virtual gallery whereby artists display entire shows of artworks in 3D space.

 

 

The created exhibition can be shared with friends by means of Twitter, Facebook fanpages, Linkedin, email, and more. The virtual gallery may also embed in your own art website.

Exhibbit can be incredibly useful for art galleries and curators, and especially artists of all skill levels. Emerging artists who have not experienced a gallery show may use Exhibbit to become familiar with the placement of artworks in a space. More experienced artists may utilize the virtual gallery to expose art to an international audience.

When I first viewed an Exhibbit exhibition, I was very impressed with the presentation, and how easy it was to navigate to certain artworks. I explain how to navigate around the Exhibbit environment next.

 

Exhibbit Virtual Online Gallery Controls

 

Go to Exhibbit

The unity web player has to be installed for your web browser, in order to view one of the exhibitions.

When installation completes, click Exhibitions at the top.

Exhibbit Controls

Moving the cursor to the left will bring up the main menu.

1. Information
   Click the information icon to display individual dialogue about the artwork in front of you.
   
   
2. Navigation
   This will show all the screen and mouse controls.
   
   
3. Tour
   Click the tour icon to receive a guided tour of the online gallery facility. Each piece is displayed in order, and accompanied by descriptions. The tour may be paused at anytime, and continued again by pressing the play button.
   
   
4. No People
   People are displayed as outlines and this removes them.
   
   
5. Full screen
   Creates a full screen image of the artwork. All regular features are available in this mode. Press Esc to return to the gallery view.
   
   
6. Wall Color
   The gallery wall may be transferred to any color of your choosing.
   
   
7. Catalogue
   Press the catalogue icon at the bottom left of the screen, to bring up the menu of artworks. Click any individual image icon to be taken directly to where the artwork hangs in the virtual art gallery.

 

 

Exhibbit gallery controls are very easy to use. If you ever navigated a 3D space in a video game, this is actually much simpler. Movement around the exhibition may either be controlled by clicking arrows or by using the mouse. Moving toward a certain artwork is intuitive. Simply click a particular painting, and the screen zeros in on that piece.

 

Exhibbit 3D Online Gallery Features

 

1. Walls
   Walls can hold any type of 2-demensional work, from photography to painting, and even video art. Wall colors cannot be changed at the moment when curating a show, but that option is coming.
   
   
2. Audio
   Audio may be included on request. This may be useful for adding background mood music, and to make comments about the show and individual artworks.
   
   
3. Frames
   Virtual frames are available for artworks, and include adjustable width and color. 

 

Exciting Uses of Exhibbit Online 3D Shows for Artists

 

1. Any artist may rent a gallery 3D space for just $5 per month. This is pocket change compared to the huge expense of displaying in an actual gallery environment. Exhibbit includes 4 pre-built galleries (Tiri, Rangitoto, Ponui, and Waiheke – under construction) and one can be custom designed.
   
   
   
   
2. Custom designed galleries can be constructed to mock an actual gallery environment, which may be very useful for art show preparation (experimentations with artwork placement and arrangement).
   
   
3. Another incredible use of Exhibbit is to have an online gallery curated and set to coincide with an actual art gallery show. People who can’t make it to the live show, because they have an appointment or live too far away, may view the paintings online in a similar setting.
   
   
4. Exhibbit may be utilized for curated group shows including artists from around the world. The exhibition takes place entirely in a virtual space, with artists who have never met.

 

Do you think this 3D virtual technology will eventually put an end to real life gallery shows?

 

I do not think there is a chance of that!

While the idea is impressive and very useful, nothing will ever compare to walking up to an artwork and interacting with it, seeing light reflect off surfaces, and viewing textures up close.

These are things that Exhibbit does not capture. But, I think this online virtual gallery is a sign of things to come. One day technology may advance to show some of the things that Exhibbit now lacks.

This is certainly something to look forward to!