CatsAndVR.com continues to grow with the addition of our sharp new Los Angeles correspondent, fellow Oculus Launchpad alumni Sherif Higazy. Check out his coverage of the Technicolor Experience Center.

Technicolor printed its last frame of film in 2015” Tim Sernoff (Deputy SVP of Technicolor) remarked in a press briefing. A significant milestone for a company that has been pioneering film technology for the past one hundred years. In 2017, Technicolor opened its doors to press and guests to unveil its Experience Center (TEC). A marker for the French company which may (fingers crossed) prove to be a far more significant milestone.

A proposed technology hub, the center hopes to incubate and advance virtual reality as a content medium and technology with a focus on improving the quality of the medium. Partnering with outside companies such as Epic (The company that brought us Unreal) NVIDIA, NOKIA and IMAX while leveraging its own portfolio companies (THE MILL, MPC, MISTER X and more.)

With $3.8B in 2013 revenue, Technicolor’s entrance into the immersive space is a signal to the wider VR industry that larger companies are taking an interest. And while Technicolor has been servicing the entertainment industry for a hundred years, they are taking a cross disciplinary approach. Alongside TEC, they announced their partnership with HP to create Mars Home Planet.

With more details to be announced at SIGGRAPH, this will be a crowdsourced effort to bring together architects, engineers, 3D artists and designers to problem solve the potential pitfalls of sustaining civilization on Mars. A unique problem that intersects aerospace, architecture, design and many other fields.

While we’ll have to wait and see how Technicolor continues to innovate in the space, the TEC is another signal that VR is coming into its own as a mature industry and that the convergence of so many significant entertainment and technology players will only benefit VR companies and consumers.

catsandvr.com/blog/

About Sherif Higazy: Sherif Higazy is a director, designer and VR developer. He is the Executive producer and founder of Thermonuclear. He covers the LA VR scene for CatsAndVR.com and is a Oculus Launchpad Alumni along side the founder of CatsAndVR.com

This Saturday Magik Gallery will curate some of the most innovative art in VR and AR at its SF event.

Virtual reality has changed how we create. From games and movies, to experiences and tools—we’re just beginning to see what’s possible. But what happens when you take traditional artistic methods and transfer them to VR? This Saturday Magik Gallery will bring together some of the most innovative artists and admired immersive creators in virtual and augmented reality art for an exposition featuring a collection of painted worlds, invisible sculptures, immersive illustrations and interactive narratives.

The event features artists such as Oakland, CA very own Tilt Brush Artist In Residence Steve Teeps who has worked with prominent artists like Flying Lotus and Future. The event is sponsored by Oculus and will have some amazing artists like Liz Edwards showcasing their amazing work using Oculus Quill.

http://magikgallery.com/

If you are in the Bay Area and a fan of VR and AR or just a fan of art and creative expression come and check out Magik Gallery this Saturday. Check out the website for more info and to RSVP. http://magikgallery.com/

http://magikgallery.com/

Coverage- UploadVR's Art & VR event.

The tech and art world are arguably in one of the most exciting times in regards to VR. This is something that I get up every morning excited to be part of. There are several people that share these same sentiments. One of the fastest growing set of influencers in the VR community recently hosted a sold out event to facilitate the discussion and discovery of Art & VR. 

UploadVR turned their offices into an art gallery and held an excellent event hosted by artist in residence and art curator of the Upload Collective space, Stuart Mason. 

The evening art showcases included "Floating World" -Marina Berlin's wire installation inspired by Virtual Reality as well as a collection of curated pieces.

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Event attendees included world renowned multimedia artist, Luska, Business Dev superstar @ SubPac, Zach Jaffe, & Co-founder at VR Weekend & Editor at Epic Magazine, Kelly Vicars.

The event drew an eclectic crowd of influencers from the art and VR world mixed with enthusiasts who were generally excited to discover the impact of VR in art world.  Those in attendance were treated to the cutting edge of Virtual Reality art including an amazing abstract art maze by Academy Award winning visual effects pioneer Kevin Mack of Shape Space VR.

via GIPHY

Of course what would an Art & VR event be without the inclusion of Google's killer VR art App, Tilt Brush. Elisabeth Moran of Google VR was on hand to not only demo Tilt Brush but also speak about creativity and expression in VR as a whole.

One of my favorite moments of the evening happened when Elisabeth Moran gave a shout out to The Wave, the amazing Vive DJ'ing tool that captivated the audience that evening including the Tilt Brush team.

Stuart Mason drove home the point of the artist portion of art by making attendees aware of H.E.ART Project, a non-profit organization created to give back to the SF art community. The project works with landlords and homeowners to provide selected artists with extended rent-controlled leases. 

UploadVR opened up their space to cultivate the connection between art and VR and I would say the Brothers Mason succeeded in that mission.

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Check out Tilt Brush with Google Virtual Art Sessions!

Virtual Art Sessions lets you observe six world-renowned artists as they develop blank canvases into beautiful works of art using Tilt Brush. Each session can be explored from start to finish from any angle, including the artist’s perspective – all viewable right from the browser.

Participating artists include illustrator Christoph Niemann, fashion illustrator Katie Rodgers, sculptor Andrea Blasich, installation artist Seung Yul Oh, automotive concept designer Harald Belker, and street artist duo Sheryo & Yok. The artists’ unique approaches to this new medium become apparent when seeing them work inside their Tilt Brush creations. Watch this behind-the-scenes video to hear what the artists had to say about their experience:

Virtual Art Sessions is a new Chrome Experiment in virtual reality art, made with Tilt Brush. We partnered with six world-renowned artists, bringing them a new way to paint, draw and sculpt. We recorded their sessions and made them accessible on the web, so you can explore how the artists developed their virtual reality creations from any angle.

https://virtualart.chromeexperiments.com/

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