Virtual Aquarium

VIRTUAL AQUARIUM is a stop motion movie created by Louise Mercadier, after the workshops she proposed to patients of 3 hospitals: Bonifacio  in  Corsica with SSR patients  Aglaia Kyriakou in Athens with children of oncology department and, Armand Trousseau in Paris, with  children of the orthopedic surgery department. It is in this department that the idea of ​​the virtual aquarium was born,  according to the tropical aquarium which held in the waiting room. The project was conceived by analogy to the experiment carried out on Aquariotherapy in a hospital environment, demonstrating its impact on pain relief. During the workshops, the patients created with the artist marine figurines, octopus, jellyfish, rays, starfish, turtles, mermaid, shark … using all kinds of materials, driftwood, plasticine, shells, pebbles …The artist then animated these figurines, for 3 months, thanks to the technique of stop motion, to make an animated film in which the creations of the patients of the three participating hospitals, meet, alongside those of the artist, in a joyful and colorful ballet, with shimmering reflections and sounds of water, calm and soothing.  

A “Ballad in the seabed” application was subsequently created. It is an interactive game that offers patients the opportunity to explore the seabed, in search of other fish, among corals, algae and marine figures in bright colors and aesthetic shapes. This application was produced by Louise Mercadier and Antoine Delmoure.

These two new applications are now integrated in the ILLUMINART device and can be projected in rooms and treatment rooms, constituting a pleasant, original immersive experience, with therapeutic and entertaining aims for patients who can immerse themselves in the depths. marine life, the flora and fauna of coral reefs, vector of peace, serenity and well-being.