Virtual reality (VR) is a technology that creates immersive digital environments that users can explore and interact with as if they were physically present. By using devices such as VR headsets, motion controllers, and tracking systems, VR replaces or significantly limits the user’s view of the physical world, allowing them to experience computer-generated spaces for entertainment, education, training, collaboration, and simulation.
More broadly, VR is part of a wider ecosystem of digital and immersive technologies that blend the physical and digital worlds. These technologies include virtual reality (VR), which immerses users in fully digital environments, and augmented reality (AR), which overlays digital content—such as images, text, or 3D objects—onto the real world through smartphones, tablets, or AR headsets. Together, these technologies enable new ways for people to interact with digital information, environments, and one another.
Access to these digital experiences is typically provided through devices such as VR headsets, AR glasses, smartphones, tablets, and other wearable technologies. As these technologies continue to evolve, they are increasingly being used across industries including gaming, healthcare, education, engineering, retail, and remote collaboration, creating more engaging and interactive digital experiences.
Preserving art through digital technologies and printed catalogues ensures that cultural heritage remains accessible for future generations. Printed catalogues collected and preserved in national institutions provide a permanent historical record of artistic production and exhibitions. At the same time, digital presentations on websites and in immersive 3D virtual spaces allow artworks to reach wider audiences beyond physical museum walls. Video media further enriches these digital experiences by documenting exhibitions, artistic processes, and curatorial narratives in engaging and accessible formats. Together, print and digital media create complementary methods for documenting, preserving, and sharing art in both physical and virtual environments.
