Galaw at Gunita: Extended Reality Murals for Experiencing Filipino Art

TL;DR

This paper introduces SoulWall, an XR mural system that enhances Filipino art appreciation through interactive digital twins, enabling embodied exploration and engagement while respecting traditional artworks.

Contribution

It presents the design and implementation of an XR mural platform for Filipino art, emphasizing embodied interaction and cultural engagement without replacing physical artworks.

Findings

Users engaged playfully with XR murals

Interaction logs reveal exploration patterns

XR murals enhance cultural appreciation

Abstract

Digital and interactive spaces are becoming increasingly prevalent as platforms for cultural engagement, offering new ways to make art more accessible, engaging, and inclusive. In the Philippine context, where visual art is deeply rooted in precolonial, colonial, and postcolonial histories, there is a growing need to explore how digital systems can support art appreciation without replacing or compromising traditional and physical artworks. Rather than treating digital experiences as substitutes, we argue for the value of creating interactive digital twins that allow audiences to explore, touch, and engage with artworks while preserving the integrity of the originals. In this paper, we present SoulWall, an extended reality (XR) interactive mural system designed to augment Filipino artworks through embodied interaction. SoulWall enables viewers to experience paintings and animations at scale, supporting exploratory and playful engagement while respecting artist intent. We describe the design and implementation of the system, including its mural layout, interaction techniques, and interaction logging infrastructure. We report findings from a user study focused on user experience complemented by analyses of interaction logs and spatial engagement patterns. Our results highlight the potential of XR murals as a cultural computing artifact for art appreciation and for showcasing Filipino artists in interactive public and exhibition spaces.