Virtual reality at the CAT address of Manetti Porciatti

The application of immersive virtual reality to architectural planning, design, as well as the exploration of architectural masterpieces or museum sites, is well known to everyone at least since the Covid-19 pandemic changed many of our habits. To tell the truth, in the CAT curriculum of our school this technological knowledge has been routinely applied since 2018. Virtual reality allows three-year students to perfect their elaborate products with 3D modeling software. To reach a similar level of knowledge, technology is introduced already in 1A CAT, within computer science teaching. In the 2021-2022 school year the laboratory activity, supervised by prof. Giovanni Calanzone, in collaboration with prof. Michele Mennino, was oriented towards a new challenge: integrating with a project in the humanities area, "Italian in Art", curated for the same class by prof. Maria Pia Betti and prof. Vincenzo DI Gennaro, professor of Art History. In designing an ideal school, the students were encouraged to imagine the most appropriate inclusion of reproductions of the works of art they studied in that Italian class which was periodically dedicated to enriching their vocabulary and developing their ability to observation through Art.

In this way, each student also explored the importance of the aesthetic value of spaces normally conceived only for their functionality. In some projects, spaces specifically designed to house the paintings have also found space among classrooms, offices, service or recreational areas, placed in dialogue with the outside, perhaps taking advantage of a corner of the architectural structure. In this way, contexts dedicated to contemplation and reflection were born, activities of the human spirit that no longer seem to find a place in the scholastic world, but which the creative sensitivity of young people has unexpectedly brought back to our attention. Once again, technology at the service of culture has offered valid ideas for building a better future, an objective to which we are committed every day at the "Manetti Porciatti" Technology Center.