Digital Materialism and How Gen Z are Building Pathways to XR and VP Acceptance
Project partners: University of the Arts London (UAL), M-XR
XR Network+ funded a project led by the London College of Fashion, part of University of the Arts London, to explore how extended reality (XR) can be used to support growth and innovation in the fashion and retail industry.
In collaboration with M-XR, a leader in digital fabric scanning technology, researchers from London College of Fashion’s Fashion Innovation Agency explored the experience of materiality (the physical properties of an object and how it is used) in the digital world.
The project focused on the Gen Z demographic to examine how enhanced realism can improve engagement with XR and Virtual Production (VP) technologies.
With the digital clothing market poised to reach $4.8 billion USD by 2031, the project examined the challenges and opportunities in creating compelling XR experiences that resonate with a younger audience.
The collaboration used cutting-edge 3D materials and immersive interfaces (VR, MR, AR, and Desktop) to analyse Gen Z’s preferences. Through ethnographic observations and focus groups, researchers uncovered key insights for fashion retailers: creating environmental synergy, embracing social factors, and fostering co-creation in XR experiences.
The study revealed that digital textiles need to be seen in motion to enhance realism in XR environments. Light reflection, relevance to body and identity, and the material simulated were also critical elements for realism. Participants also reported that the experience of product realism to be significantly better on desktop and AR compared to VR or MR platforms.
Digital Materialism is one of seven projects supported by round one of XR Network+ Prototyping, Impact and Acceleration (PIA) grants. Researchers at UK universities were awarded up to £10,000 to develop new ideas and complete existing research related to VP between September 2023 and March 2024.
Categories: Arts, Performance, Research, Technology