Virtual Worlds: Corals at the Grant Museum

Virtual Worlds: Corals at the Grant Museum allows visitors to dive amongst healthy, degraded and restored coral in an installation built from audio recordings and underwater photography captured in the Pacific Ocean.

Based on fieldwork by UCL marine biologists Ben Williams and Jason Lynch, and made in collaboration with Datascape Realities, Virtual Worlds: Corals at the Grant Museum reconstructs real-world coral habitats virtually in a location-specific experience. The VR activity is presented alongside the Grant Museum’s own collection of coral specimens, augmented reality digital models and 3D prints, and is supported by a public events programme.

Coral reefs sustain 30% of all ocean species, and their degradation represents a stark reminder of the climate crisis. The study and preservation of coral reef habitats are vitally important to planetary health, and humanity in general. The data gathered from corals today is complex and multi-sensory, but corals are often still presented in conventional ways, including in museum settings. Coral specimens in museums can sometimes reinforce the misconception of corals as static and colonised objects, rather than as animals that form the foundation of marine ecosystems.

Virtual Worlds transforms climate data into a mixed reality experience for everyone, where the vital work of coral restoration is visceral and emotive. Visitors are encouraged to experience it for themselves and re-imagine the museum as a space for climate action.