Do we perceive reality as it is?

In our everyday life, we are constantly dealing with different representations of reality, where it becomes impossible to distinguish what is real, and what is not. "Welcome to the Desert of the Real" is a metaphorical virtual reality interpretation of Baudrillard's concept of hyperreality, which suggests that the world we live in has been replaced by a copy world, where we seek simulated stimuli and nothing more. The Desert represents the Real, and mirages represent various kinds of so-called "simulacrums", such as physical and psychological perceptions, media reality construct, technology and physical world, and societal conventions;

and are visualised as a 40 min. journey in a virtual metaphorical landscape, accompanied with an installation, video-trailer, map of the desert printed on 6x6m2 fabric, and a tourist guide which includes the map and 37 texts which are written by me and can also be heard as a voiceover in the desert and the mirages.

The project was nominated for department prize and got an honourable mention from Stroom Encouragement Award jury; and shown on various online&offline shows during the course of the years 2016 — 2017.

Voiced and soundscape'd by Izabel Caligiore.

Photos by Roel Backaert, Charlotte Brand, Natalia Jordanova.