Kaihua Monastery | Digital Temple

Situated in Shanxi Province, China, Kaihua Temple, dating back to approximately 1073/1092-96 AD, once boasted a sprawling architectural complex. Today, only its main Buddha hall, the Hall of Heroes, remains, adorned with precious mural art. CAMLab visualizes the Buddhist essence of mural art through an immersive digital experience. Using a blend of symbols and sensory media, our website unveils the intricate logic behind image production and spatial narrative in Chinese art and architecture.

***Due to confidentiality and the Non-Disclosure Agreement, the design process remains undisclosed. I want to emphasize that the success of this endeavor was the result of a collective effort and teamwork, and all credits for the website belong to the exceptional team at Harvard FAS CAMLab.

Project Duration

2021 - 2023 July

My Role

UX Designer & Researcher

Team

Harvard FAS CAMLab

  • Bilingual Learning

    Recognizing that our audience comprises scholars, students, and researchers from diverse linguistic backgrounds, we have developed a bilingual mode that seamlessly integrates both Chinese and English languages. By breaking down language barriers, we empower international scholars to delve deeper into the rich tapestry of Kaihua Temple's mural art, fostering cross-cultural exchange, and promoting the dissemination of Chinese art on a global scale.

  • Digital Archive

    Our Digital Archive feature meticulously curates classic scenes and corresponding stories from the murals of Kaihua Temple, ensuring a comprehensive exploration of its cultural significance. Users are invited to zoom in and observe intricate details, allowing for a deeper understanding and appreciation of the artwork's nuances. This provides great convenience and efficiency for scholars studying and researching the murals of Kaihua Temple to retrieve high-resolution images.

  • Virtual Optical Experience

    Collaborating with CG animation artists and architects, we created this immersive monastery space with mesmerizing lights effects. The beam of lights are created by artists by combining research of Buddhist stories and graphic paintings on murals, imagining and recreating them. It can deepen the audience's sensations to gain the stunning theater experience.

  • Interactive Annotation

    In order to help students understand the storyline, and according to the learning design theories, we divided the complex mural images into fragments and divided the entire long story into small modules according to the Buddhist storytelling, which is more engaging for students to sort out the structure of Buddhist stories and match the images with texts.

  • Sequencing Matching Game

    To improve the interactive learning experience and inquiry, we developed a sequencing game feature. Users can complete our 16 scene graphic and text matching quizzes based on what they've learned and comprehended about mural arts. It aims to strengthen students' understanding and memory during the learning process while also increasing their experiential delight.

  • Immersive Classroom

    To clearly demonstrate the sophisticated visual representation of the architectural space in the artwork we created 3D models of each Buddhist temple described in the research article. We use the historical context of Buddhist art, architectural characteristics, and temple ambience music to assist people understand the spatial order of mural layout, characters, and story narration.

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