Is Virtual Reality the Garden of Eden for Neurodivergent Artists?
It’s time to move into the Headset, DYSPLA tell’s us why!
My name is Lennie Varvarides, I am the Founder of DYSPLA, a London-based art studio making and producing the work of Neurodivergent (ND), Storymakers.
In 2018 I attended a talk at the Cannes Film Festival where Frank Patterson, President & CEO of Trilith Studios in Atlanta, (where much of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was formed), was running a talk on Virtual Reality (VR). I asked him if he thought there was a connection between VR and Neurodiversity.
I was particularly interested to know whether or not there was any evidence to suggest that a high proportion of VR Makers were Neurodivergent. As always, that level of detail is not being recorded, but he suspects the numbers are high. The world of VR attracts 3D thinkers, (people with Dyslexia) and fast thinkers, (people with ADHD) so people on the Spectrum are likely to find a natural home in this medium.
Neurodivergence and VR
DYSPLA sees a strong relationship between the Neurodivergent cognitive advantage and the VR and XR (Extended Reality) experience. Neurodivergent people, (especially Dyslexics), are repeatedly said to be 360° thinkers. This is an ability to look around corners not only physically but emotionally and transcend time through…
