Cultural Properties in 8K: “An Investigation with Mihotoke”

Experiences Not Available in Exhibition Rooms

Have you ever wanted to use a light to study the details of a Buddhist statue from the Kamakura period? If so, welcome to “An Investigation with Mihotoke.” This is content in 8K in which the user uses a flashlight-shaped control device to view a Buddhist statue.We have achieved an experience in which users can hunt for the highlights of Buddhist artwork by shining a light on them in the same way that museum curators do, which cannot be replicated in a standard exhibition room with fixed lighting. When illuminated, you can see the details of the textures and materials, for example, the wooden body and metal hair ornamentation.As the user experience (UX) design lead, I worked closely with the curators on the development of the project, from the idea of the experience to the user interface (UI) design. What I distinctly remember are the workshops and research that we conducted to brainstorm ideas. The habits and ideas of people working in museums were very stimulating. It was also interesting listening to the curators talk about Buddhist statues, and in the latter half of the project, I learned a lot about Buddhist statues. In 2022, we exhibited our work at “Tokyo National Museum 150th Anniversary Special Thematic Exhibition: Museum of the Future,” which is an experience that many people enjoyed.

In personal things, however, my favorite place in the world is my bed, and I sleep most of the day on my days off. I tell myself that I need this time to recharge my batteries in order to create better designs.

Related information
Tokyo National Museum 150th Anniversary Special Thematic Exhibition: Museum of the Future

Note: The department that the author belongs to and the content of the article are correct at the time of writing.