VR for Exploring Art: Revealing Layers of the Past
In 2022, the XR Zone at TU Delft’s New Media Center launched VR for Exploring Art, an immersive journey into the complex life of a medieval painting — a work that, over centuries, had been altered, repainted, and reinterpreted, sparking debate among art historians over its “true” state. This virtual reality experience doesn’t just recreate a painting — it reconstructs a dialogue across time.
The project began with a single, enigmatic artwork. Originally created in the Middle Ages, it was later repainted, concealing key elements of the original composition. Today, the painting hangs in a museum in its altered state. Yet, beneath layers of oil and varnish, fragments of the original remain, faintly visible under ultraviolet light — traces of a hidden past.
Using advanced scanning technologies, art historians were able to reconstruct several stages of the painting’s evolution. These reconstructions form the basis of the VR experience, which allows participants to view and compare the original medieval version with the later, repainted version. In the immersive environment, users can toggle between different layers of the artwork, revealing areas that were modified, erased, or added over time. The experience is both visual and critical — encouraging participants to form their own interpretations about authenticity, preservation, and artistic intent.
“Every layer tells a story — in VR, we don’t just look at art; we witness centuries of choices, erasures, and revelations unfold before our eyes.”
The project evolved further in the winter of 2024, as the XR Zone expanded the experience into a dual-mode simulation. Visitors now explore the painting under two distinct lighting conditions: the warm, flickering glow of medieval candlelight and the sharp focus of modern museum spotlights. These lighting differences are not cosmetic — they subtly shift how the viewer perceives texture, form, and detail, impacting emotional and intellectual engagement.
To understand how perception changes between these versions, researchers integrated eye-tracking technology within the VR headset. Participants’ gaze data was mapped into heatmaps, capturing which elements of the painting attracted attention in each scenario. As part of the experiment, participants also narrated their experience, describing how the painting made them feel and what they noticed first. These verbal responses were then analyzed alongside the eye-tracking data to uncover patterns in attention, interpretation, and emotional response.
VR for Exploring Art is more than a technological demonstration — it’s an evolving conversation between the past and present, science and story, perception and reality. It invites us to reconsider how we see art, not just as a static object, but as a living narrative shaped by time, light, and human intervention.
Candlelight
Spotlight
Developer : Jeroen Boots, Yoshua Pranata Andoko
XR: Arno Freeke
