Digitizing Cultural Heritage and Accelerating Museum Digital Transformation Through Multisensory Virtual Reality

Jiaxin Liu ()
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Jiaxin Liu: Utrecht University, Department of Media and Culture Studies

A chapter in XR and Metaverse, 2026, pp 183-194 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract In recent years, many industries and institutions have adopted transformative and innovative approaches to upgrade their existing and upcoming services and products. Among them, museums stand out as institutions that offer leisure, exploration, and inspiration opportunities for their audiences. Nonetheless, traditional museum curatorial practices and exhibits face challenges in attracting their audiences and appealing to newcomers, which they address through the continuous development of new technologies. This research presents a “research through design” (RTD) case study of a multisensory virtual reality (VR) experience, Rembrandt Sensorium, aimed at mitigating the challenges museums face, such as the demand for novel, embodied museum experiences sought by audiences that go beyond the omnipresence of art “content” on screen-based devices like smartphones. Four design opportunities are detailed, and the design workflow is presented to highlight both theoretical implications and practical applications. Findings from this RTD exploration underscore the potential of emerging technologies (i.e., multisensory digital experiences) in museums and the necessity of meaningfully integrating these technologies into curatorial practices and museum communication strategies.

Keywords: Research through design; Multisensory VR; Embodiment; Museum experience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:prbchp:978-3-032-11983-4_14

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-11983-4_14

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