Every virtual reality platform needs a Tilt Brush, apparently. Google’s Tilt Brush has made waves in the virtual art world for the HTC Vive, putting artists directly into their work, and allowing them to paint freely and without many limits. Tilt Brush has spurred entire virtual art galleries, highly detailed pieces, even entire worlds of their own. For the Playstation VR, Harmonix Music VR even had its own answer to Tilt Brush, with The Easel. The Easel is another paint-a-long exploration, with music and sound reactive brushes that pulse along to the music playing in the environment. Facebook will soon be releasing Quill, from Oculus Story Studio. Now, Adobe has their own artistic tool to bring to the table: Project Dali.
Project Dali is being billed as an “immersive drawing experience in the virtual world,” according to its announcement blog penned by Erik Natzke, principal artist-in-residence at Adobe Research. The project, officially revealed at Adobe MAX, came about from a desire to separate oneself from a mere mouse and keyboard for digital illustrations, and the ability to be able to physically walk within one’s own work. “The experience is so surreal that we couldn’t resist calling it Project Dali,” writes Natzke, referencing the pioneer surreal artist Salvador Dali.
exists between the digital and the analog
Project Dali was not only inspired by fellow artists and designers, but also kids. “Just observe a child with a phone or an iPad. As they investigate, they unearth potentials through their natural gestures and interactions,” writes Natzke. “They learn things we don’t have to teach them. This is the kind of experience I think we can capture with VR—a natural, joyful unfolding through exploration.”
Project Dali wants to exist between the digital and the analog, and in a way, make the artist themselves be a reactive brush to create whatever they wish. Project Dali also doesn’t want to limit its creators, which is why Adobe has consulted with a variety of artists, from the subtractive stylings of Maya Gold to a woodworker positioned at the Minnesota Street Project, about what they would enjoy from a digital VR painting.
You can read more about Project Dali here on Adobe’s blog.
