Coffee & Viz - Worldbuilding and Recovery: Revisiting Historical Moments With Virtual Reality

Visualizations in the form of interactive and immersive experiences have the potential to build empathy and deepen understanding of historic contexts. In this talk, Dr. Derek Ham will present the inspirations and processes behind his ground-breaking work in Virtual Reality that re-examines and reclaims moments in Black and Civil Rights history. Building upon the critical acclaim of his I am a Man (2017) project, Dr. Ham developed and released Barnstormers: Determined to Win (2021) in collaboration with the Negro League Baseball Museum and with support from Epic Games and Reallusion. This immersive historical fiction allows players to step into the shoes of iconic figures like Josh Gibson and Satchel Paige and experience the joys, triumphs, and challenges of Black baseball players during segregation. The project was recognized at the Cannes XR Festival in March 2022.

This talk is part of the inaugural Black Research Symposium at NC State University with the theme “The Power of Community: Afro-Diasporic Worldbuilding and a Sustainable Futurity.”

Bio

Derek Ham is an award winning designer with international recognition for his historic VR explorations. His research interest spans the areas of game-based learning, algorithmic thinking, and digital fabrication/making. In his work, he continues to investigate both virtual reality and augmented reality technology to find ways these tools can expand the possibilities of interaction design. Before joining the faculty in the College of Design, Derek taught at MIT’s School of Architecture, Harvard’s Graduate School of Design (GSD), and the Rhode Island School of Design.