Experiencing The Return

A "docent" introduces visitors to Adam in Reid Farrington's The Return. All photos by Thomas B. Ling

«Over the course of its opening weekend, more than three thousand museumgoers attended The Return. While some visitors undoubtedly knew what to expect of Reid Farrington's digital performance installation, others simply wandered into the gallery and were greeted by a very active Adam.»

Reid Farrington’s “The Return,” a groundbreaking new work, investigates dynamically the 12-year restoration of Tullio Lombardo’s shattered masterpiece “Adam.” This performance installation, commissioned by #MetMuseumPresents, invites visitors to interact directly with a digital avatar created from 3D scans of the broken pieces of the sculpture that were pivotal in the conservation effort. "The Return" will run during Museum hours through Sunday, August 2. #metmuseum #AdamRestored

A video posted by The Metropolitan Museum of Art (@metmuseum) on Jul 13, 2015 at 8:08am PDT

A life-size digital avatar of Tullio Lombardo's Renaissance sculpture Adam (ca. 1490–95), controlled by a live performer in a motion-capture suit in the Met's Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, is occupying gallery 504 through August 2. Fusing live theater with pioneering digital animation and gaming technology, this digital installation invites viewers to interact with art in a new way and discover the incredible intricacies of the sculpture.

The actor portraying Adam interacts with visitors from the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium stage

All art lovers want to learn the "stories" inherent in their favorite works, and this was precisely the impetus behind The Return—a way to tap into the design of the new gallery space, the story of Adam and Eve, how Lombardo sculpted his masterpiece, and the incredible restoration process of the statue after it shattered at the Met in 2002. But the installation is also a performance piece that allows you, the visitor, to flow in and out of the story arc.

Watch a clip of #DigitalAdam in “The Return,” an interactive performance on view through 8/2. #MetMuseumPresents https://t.co/CcWLUjqGWa

— metmuseum (@metmuseum) July 17, 2015

Audiences have been thrilled with the opportunity to look behind the scenes, and both adults and children alike have been completely mesmerized by the live performer in the motion-capture studio, sticking around to see exactly how each movement is digitally translated into the Adam avatar (which can also be seen on a live stream during Museum hours). In just its second week, the performers portraying the "docent" in the gallery have already experienced a range of reactions from their audience members, and are ready to improvise upon the script in order to find new ways of interacting with visitors.

Since Adam can now speak for himself, the Met gave him a social media presence for the opening week, which allowed followers on Twitter and Instagram to hear (and share in) his story and musings through the #DigitalAdam hashtag. With just over a week left, be sure to visit the digital Adam and let us know what you think by tagging your posts with #MetMuseumPresents.

Journey to the Garden of Eden with #DigitalAdam, on view through 8/2, during “The Return.” http://t.co/mbufS5Qa3q https://t.co/aoPHNLXE8c

— metmuseum (@metmuseum) July 14, 2015