Artsy at the Fair: The Armory Show 2017

In celebration of The Armory Show 2017, Artsy is partnering with Microsoft to create an immersive mixed reality experience with Microsoft HoloLens, the world’s first self-contained holographic computer. In collaboration with Pace Gallery’s Studio Drift, an Amsterdam-based art collective, Artsy has commissioned the creation of a digital environment at the intersection of art, technology, and design. Visitors can experience the work at the Artsy booth at The Armory Show, March 2-5 at Piers 92 and 94.

Microsoft’s pioneering HoloLens mixed reality headset, which employs high-definition holographic technologies, enables users to interact with a unique digital environment that merges the virtual and physical worlds. The device overlays responsive holograms on the user’s frame of vision, resulting in a mixed reality that allows users to explore and interact with content in three dimensions. 

Studio Drift, who often collaborates with scientists and technologists, creates works that are notably immersive, interactive, and large-scale, blending the physical and technological realms through art and design. Visitors to the fair will be able to experience this collaboration, as well as explore an exclusive catalogue of artworks in mixed reality, at the Artsy booth, visible only through the HoloLens. 

“We are on the cusp of a fundamental shift in the way we experience the digital world. It will no longer be a separate entity, bound by the dimensions of our screens, but rather integrated into the fabric of our physical reality. This evolution opens up countless opportunities that will shape our visual culture and art,” said Elena Soboleva, Artsy’s Curator of Special Projects. “Artsy’s core value as an art x tech company means we strive to offer artists opportunities to explore new frontiers of their practices. We’re thrilled to work with Studio Drift to bring their vision to The Armory Show and enable them to explore mixed reality with Microsoft.” 

“This project with Artsy and The Armory Show marks Microsoft’s first collaboration in a commercial art context and we’re thrilled to see how mixed reality will allow HoloLens users to experience art in a new way,” said Lorraine Bardeen, General Manager, Microsoft HoloLens and Windows Experiences. “We’re excited to showcase the HoloLens, which serves as a medium for developers and makers of all kinds to experiment in mixed reality, to a new audience of art enthusiasts through this partnership with Artsy.” 

The project is the latest iteration of Artsy Projects, an ongoing series of installations and activations in which Artsy invites contemporary artists to reimagine art world spaces.