Drawing directly on the work Modigliani made in this studio, archive records, and historical research, PRELOADED brought this hitherto unseen, and unphotographed space meticulously back to life through 60+ objects, materials and artworks.

We used archive materials, artefacts and photography to model Modigliani’s furniture, possessions and art materials in meticulous detail. We also uncovered first-hand accounts from Modigliani’s friends, peers and sitters and incorporated them into the experience, offering visitors an immediate and intimate connection to the artist, almost 100 years after his death.

Two key pieces of artwork, including Modigliani’s final self-portrait, were painstakingly recreated by PRELOADED 3D modellers. This was done using Tate’s technical research, in partnership with other galleries and lenders, and informed every detail, down to the layering of paint, and the specularity of the model and canvas stretcher.

To ensure that the experience delighted diverse audiences, regardless of different levels of comprehension and tech familiarity, PRELOADED tested it early, and regularly, throughout the project lifecycle.

In VR, testing starts with onboarding hardware that might be alien to the average gallery goer. Given that Tate’s traditional Modigliani audience member was likely to be aged between 45-65 and mostly female, we worked with Tate to understand visitors’ preconceptions, and how to make them feel comfortable with VR experiences. Many users felt nervous about putting on headsets and unsure about how to use them, which made simple and intuitive onboarding critical. Above all, we wanted to ensure that technology did not detract from the VR experience.

With this in mind, we designed the in-gallery experience to be seated, so that visitors could relax and enjoy it without worrying about tripping over or navigating controllers. In testing, although some people did express a desire to move around the space we were designing, a larger proportion said that they would be too nervous to stand up given it was their first time experiencing VR.

The exhibition opened at Tate Modern on 24 November 2017, and the VR experience was viewed in-gallery by approximately 3,500 visitors every week.

PRELOADED and Tate designed Modigliani VR to be an integral part of the exhibition at Tate Modern, complementing the artworks. The experience successfully immerses visitors in the last studio where Modigliani lived and worked – and recreates a place that cannot be visited in person. The experience offers a new angle on the artworks and characters that the visitor might have seen earlier in the exhibition, and crucially, it provides powerful context when visitors emerge into the last room of the exhibition, which contains Modigliani’s final Self Portrait.

PRELOADED created a VR experience that enhances, rather than detracts from the exhibition by understanding the visitor’s journey, and how the experience relates to the rest of the show.

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