NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019 — A Global VR Award For Fashion, Cultural, and Art — “TAKKUN MUSEUM” — Grand Prize Winner

The winners from the various categories chosen from 145 entries from 8 different countries have been decided.

“NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019”—a global award designed for VR contents, jointly organized by Loftwork Inc. (Shibuya Ward, Tokyo), PARCO CO., LTD (Shibuya Ward, Tokyo), and Psychic VR Lab (Headquarter locates at Shinjuku, Tokyo. Representative Director: Masahiro Yamaguchi), the provider of the creative platform specialized for creating and publishing VR/AR/MR contents “STYLY (https://styly.cc)”—has announced the names of the winners for various prizes.

In recent years, the development of new technologies has contributed to bringing along a new age where anyone can easily create and experience 3D worlds. Anticipating the coming of this new age, the “NEWVIEW AWARDS” was established with an aim to discover the next generation of VR content artists whose works could captivate the attention of users from around the world and also create the foundation for pioneering and promoting new creative expressions that ultimately help artists to step up to the next stage. Having opened for entry submissions from July 1, 2019, to September 30, 2019, the second “NEWVIEW AWARDS” has finally announced the winners of its prestigious prizes.

The NEWVIEW AWARDS was judged by a 9 member board consisting of — Nemu Yumemi, Keiichi Matsuda, Mitsuru Kuramoto, Nick Denboer, Lu Yang, Keng-Ming Liu, Ootsuki Sou, Keisuke Toyoda, and Akihiko Taniguchi. They had the difficult task of selecting this year’s grand prize winner from a total of 145 entries from 8 different countries. Additional awards were given in other categories as well.

GOLD & SILVER Prizes — Definitive Proof Showing the Possibilities for New Forms of Expression

This year’s GOLD Prize, also known as the award’s Grand Prix, was awarded to Takkun (Kindergartner)’s “Takkun Museum”—an interactive 3D world depicting the growth of a young child, a future creator. This year’s SILVER Prize, the semi-Grand Prix of the “NEWVIEW AWARDS,” was awarded to 3 entries: “VR MANGA WORLD for STYLY,” an interactive artwork which attempted to reproduce the world of Manga with VR; “Piece of String,” a photogrammetry world in which users could experience sensual changes; and “ne.mui,” an interactive artwork in which users could experience the “boundaries in unconsciousness.”

In addition to the grand prizes, the PARCO prize, was granted to a lucky winner who would have the great privilege to have their work displayed at Shibuya PARCO. This honor went to “ne.mui.” Also, the Media Ambition Tokyo Prize was granted to a lucky winner who would have the great privilege to exhibit their artwork at Media Ambition Tokyo. This award was given to “Piece of String.” Other SILVER Prizes went to two entries in two different categories. The first was HIDEKI MATSUTAKE Prize, an award given to its winner that gives them the exclusive privilege to collaborate with Hideki Matsutake on their next VR content. This was awarded to “Merging Memories.” The second and last of the awards is the KMNZ Prize, which granted the winner the privilege to debut their work as a collaborated artist with the KMNZ unit. This was awarded to “C’est la vie, SHOGYO-MUJO.”

Users and audiences from around the world can experience the artworks from these winners and many others who also made the Finalist’s List for the NEWVIEW AWARDS at a special exhibition held at Shibuya PARCO 9F—Creative Studio (15-1 Udagawacho, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo), from (Sat.) December 14 to (Sun.) December 22, 2019.

By supporting these winning artists, the NEWVIEW project aims to continue to discover and nurture the next generation of VR creators and also help them to pioneer and promote new creative expressions and ways of designing new experiences in three-dimensional space.

NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019 WINNERS

GOLD Prize (Awarded to 1 Artwork; 20,000 USD Prize)

Entry Title: “Takkun Museum”

Artist: Takkun (Kindergartner | JAPAN)

Showcasing the creations made by the artist’s young son, who is going to be a future artist, this VR space demonstrates a new method for documenting and recording memories using xR.

 

Comments from the Artist:

Comments from the Artist:
“This time, I feel very honored for being able to receive this prestigious award.
For my project, I’ve created this VR artwork such that I could recap my young boy’s cute expressions and his creations. Together with my little boy, our family has had a lot of fun creating various quirky creations during our summer breaks. These creations are, without a doubt, a precious part of our memories. As my child grows up, I hope that, together with other family members, we could once again come to this very space I’ve created. At that time, I’m sure we would be filled with joy, hearing the words “welcome home” from our four-year-old boy.”

Comments from the Judges:

“This artwork might be a demonstration of how a family album would look like in the future. With xR, in addition to being able to experience any newly created content, individual users can also arrange and create their own spaces. The grand prize this time is a unique experience that sketches out the picture of the photo album service of the future, an experience that truly inspires others. Personally, looking closer at the project, I can’t help but imagine the young boy crying with the goggles on as they look back at the precious memories with their families before entering the next stage of their life. This project, without a doubt, opened up the exciting possibilities where such imagination becomes a part of our daily lives.” —Nemu Yumemi (Yumeminemu’s Lead Manager)

“This project is a memory book recording the growth of the artist’s young child. The world born from this project adopts the very unique interpretation of the world from a young child to arrange his quirky pictures and creations. In addition, the 3D room depicted in the project changes as the young child grows up. Instead of being an artificial media used for recording pictures and videos, the innocent changes depicted in the project helps to create a feeling of casual daily surroundings. The project gives off the feeling that the very growth of the young child mutually impacts the environment around him. Personally, my heart was deeply moved by the warming feeling of the father who has been trying to thoroughly record the growth of his boy, the precious past that no one could ever return to.” —Akihiko Taniguchi (Artist)

“’Takkun Museum’ is a world born from the creativity of a young child. Although the project may seem simple, it’s incredibly moving. With different media, including 360° videos, 2D videos, animated characters, choreographed performances, typographical and photogrammetry techniques, 3D room models, and spatial audio combined, the project is also a very ambitious piece of artwork. Although the videos and creations encased in the project were created by Takkun, and that many of them are quirky and different by natures, the world created through combining these creations is neatly arranged. The project takes users through a well-paced journey during which they can thoroughly enjoy the flowing events. It goes to show that the project also paid attention to the user’s experiences. For me, this project is not only cute, filled with warming love, thoroughly thought out, it is also personal and detailed. ‘Takkun Museum’ truly deserves the GOLD prize.”—Keiichi Matsuda (Designer, Filmmaker)

“All of the artists wish to return to being children. However, as children, our creations could hardly make it to the outside world. This very project vividly depicts the creator’s strong wish to bring the unique perspectives and creativity of young children to the public stage. Children’s creativity is without limit and always contain within them a certain adventurous feeling. What’s even more important in this project is the resonance it creates. Maybe it was because we were once young children, that the alternating expressions and feelings created throughout the project could strongly resonate within me. Even though the project may not be ‘the most beautiful,’ it is, without a doubt, the one project which best conveyed the feelings of its creator.”—Keng-Ming Liu (Founder & Creative Director at Bito)

SILVER Prize (Awarded to 3 Artworks; 5,000 USD Prize)

Entry Title: “VR MANGA WORLD for STYLY”

Artist: Oeka Aki (Virtual YouTuber/VR Manga Artist | JAPAN)

Illustrating the unique Manga expressions in an artificial space, this VR project picks on one’s brain with the question: How would Manga be harmonized in the age of XR?

Comments from the Judges:

“This art project vividly depicted a part of the evolution occurring in the world of Manga. As users dive into the project’s virtual world, they are offered with an opportunity to experience the Manga instead of just reading it like with traditional comics. The unique expressions encased in the project are bolstered such that users can experience the actions in a way similar to reading a Manga instead of making it such that the actions become anime-like. That, for me, is the best aspect of this project.” —Mitsuru Kuramoto (Broadcast Writer)

“This project, in my opinion, deserves the first place. I, as an independent creator, believe that the refinement of even the smallest details is just as important to an art project as creativity. I’m strongly impressed by the high level of details and the professional visual effects, techniques employed in this project. From the bottom of my heart, I truly want to praise the project’s creator for all of the dedication and efforts put into it. As a creator, I look forward to continuing supporting art projects like this for which the creators have extended all of their efforts.” —Lu Yang (Artist)

 

Entry Title: “Piece of String”

Artist: Wyatt Roy (Creative Director | UNITED STATES)

Created with photogrammetry techniques, this VR project depicts an empty house where only echoes remain. Following the piece of string left in the scenes, users can experience various sensual changes happening to their bodies as they wander around the house.

Comments from the Judges:

“I really liked Piece of String. I made a similar photogrammetry scan of my studio in Toronto and have been creating a lot of scans myself, but this was a very unique presentation. I loved the use of scale to explore the space and thought it was a very clever way to make a larger piece using a single asset. It would be cool to create a game with this concept with characters and take it a step further. Lots of potentials here. Congratulations on the silver prize!” —Nick DenBoer (Video Artist)

“Just by following a seemingly meaningless cord laid around a run-of-the-mill room, the creator has led users to examine the environments encompassed within different parts of the house, spatially, scaly, and eventually pushed the users to re-examine themselves in a unique, private, and poetic way. Artistically speaking, for me, this project is an excellent artwork. Furthermore, the project has also helped me to rediscover the possibilities hidden within VR, a media with which users can imaginatively showcase their realities, and reconstruct the realities with their imagination.” —Keisuke Toyoda (Architect/noiz Architects)

Entry Title: “ne.mui”

Artist: Ono Natsuki (USB Human | JAPAN)

“ne.mui” is a VR project which explores the “boundaries within unconsciousness.” The word “ne.” within the project’s name means “Network,” while the word “mui” means “No deliberate meanings” in Japanese.

Comments from the Judges:

“For me, between the creator’s initial goals and the submitted work, there seems to be many points which haven’t been followed through, making the project seems like it’s still unfinished (especially from the operating perspectives). However, encompassing a significantly large space in addition to wacky visual styles, this project, which depicts a virtual personal world instead of creating a new experience for others, piqued my interest. The project continued to offer me with various changes in its visual style as I travel through its large space, helping to maintain my interests (that being said, the operations are not thoroughly done). There are also many parts whose visual art is ‘really cool.’ In a sense, the fact that the project is still ‘unfinished’ may be a good thing. Were the creator to develop her next work, I hope that she could also look at her project from the perspective of a user, and create the project such that users could smoothly enter the world of her extraordinary visual art.” —Sou Ootsuki (Filmmaker/Director)

“Based on the main theme of exploring the ‘boundaries within unconsciousness,’ this VR project is a passionate artwork encompassing a vast space. Abstracted as the main theme may sound, the project succeeded in presenting the creator’s unique interpretation and her view of the world by guiding users through the ‘boundaries’ presented within the vast space and repeating the various changes in the spaces within and outside these boundaries. The project can be said to be an experience through which users could wander between realities and dreams. For me, this VR technology and its unique expression create an inextricable link, connecting the creators’ personal experience with others. Just like physical materials such as acrylic paints and clay, this technology could realize the art within anyone without them knowing.” —Akihiko Taniguchi (Artist)

 

PARCO Prize (Awarded to 1 Artwork)

Entry Title: “ne.mui”

Artist: Ono Natsuki (USB Human | JAPAN)
※Together with the SILVER Prize, this entry is the winner of two awards

Comments from the Judges:

“Based on the concept of ‘unconsciousness,’ this VR project gave birth to a vast space whose final destination could not be predicted. It was this unpredictability which created the charm of this project. At Shibuya PARCO, we’ve collaborated with Discont, the winner of last year’s PARCO Prize to organize a special artwork exhibition. With Shibuya PARCO as a canvas, we hope that Ono Natsuki, the winner of our prize this year, could create a captivating spatial artwork, capable of exceeding our expectations.” —Naotaka Hayashi (Executive Officer of PARCO/Group Digital Promotion Division)

HIDEKI MATSUTAKE Prize (Awarded to 1 Artwork)

Entry Title: “Merging Memories”

Artist: Kenichiro Hirai (Art/Advertising Planner | JAPAN)

Reconstructing the “Nonbe Yokocho” with the pictures uploaded to various SNS platforms, this VR project is a memory book which records not only the pictures of the location, but also the people, and the moment in which they were taken.

Comments from the Judges:

“Reconstructed with photogrammetry, this nostalgic VR space not only gives users a glimpse into a once passed era but also creates a new feeling that draws users into the space itself instead of just illustrating the nostalgia feeling itself. Journeying through the space, it seems as if different sounds are echoing throughout the lining retro Izakaya diners.” —Hideki Matsutake (Musician, Synthesizer/Programmer)

KMNZ Prize (Awarded to 1 Artwork)

Entry Title: “C’est la vie, SHOGYO-MUJO”

Artist: SAKI TAKEGAWA (3DCG Designer | JAPAN)

Combining the iconic phrase “C’est la vie” (That’s life) and the Buddhism phrase “Shogyo mujo” (All is vanity) into its main theme, this VR project, which depicts the very entrance to an arcade game center, is a blend between realities and imagination.

Comments from the Judges:

“Congratulations on winning the award. KMNZ is a unit that has been working to connect the virtual world with reality through music and fashion. Feeling great sympathy toward this VR project which connected the virtual world and reality through a different form, we’ve chosen the entry for our prize. The idea of using an arcade game machine to travel between two different worlds in addition to the unique world view born from this experience is brilliant. Furthermore, in addition to the beauty born from the differences before and after entering the virtual world, the metaphor ‘this world was created virtually (STYLY)’ left us with a great impression. Thank you for creating such a wonderful project. Once again, congratulations on winning the award!” —KMNZ (VTuber Girls HIP-HOP Unit)

Media Ambition Tokyo Prize (Awarded to 1 Artwork)

Entry Title: “Piece of String”

Artist: Wyatt Roy (Creative Director | UNITED STATES)

※Together with the SILVER Prize, this entry is the winner of two awards

Comments from the Judges:

“With the creator’s own residence at the beginning instead of an inorganic space, this VR project could easily captivate the users’ attention. Even though the space’s overall structure and the story follow a simple, clear rule, with its spatial accents and drastic spatial changes, the project continuously takes users from one surprise to another. Although VR is a technology capable of pulling users from reality to the virtual world, this project utilized VR as if it’s just another prolonged part of our daily lives. Through the journey, I could strongly feel that human’s creativity has been greatly enlarged.” —Ou Sugiyama (Media Ambition Tokyo)

Exhibition Information

NEWVIEW EXHIBITION 2019 -DIFFUSION-

A special exhibition where users and fans from around the world can freely experience the VR spaces designed by those on our Finalist list is being held at Shibuya PARCO. Named after its main theme, “DIFFUSION,” the exhibition is where users can catch a glimpse of the new three-dimensional experiences and expressions.

Exhibition Period: From (Sat.) December 14 to (Sun.) December 22, 2019

Opening Time: From 10:00 to 21:00 (The venue will close at 19:00 on the final exhibition day)

Entrance Fee: Free of charge

Venue: Shibuya PARCO 9F—Creative Studio (15-1 Udagawacho, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo)

NEWVIEW STAND

As a part of the NEWVIEW Project, this special exhibition offers users from around the world the opportunity to experience various VR artworks, which mainly consist of the project’s fruition from last year.

Exhibition Period: Until (Sun.) December 22, 2019

Opening Time: From 10:00 to 21:00

Entrance Fee: Free of charge

Venue: Shibuya PARCO 5F – Special Venue (15-1 Udagawacho, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo)

A New AR Installation Developed by Discont — Winner of Last Year’s PARCO Prize — Is Now On Exhibition at Shibuya PARCO

In collaboration with PARCO, VR space designer Discont, the winner of NEWVIEW AWARD 2018’s PARCO Prize, have developed “World’s end supernova”—a new AR installation set up as permanent exhibition at Shibuya PARCO 5F, “SHIBUYA XR SHOWCASE.”

■SHIBUYA XR SHOWCASE

Venue: Shibuya PARCO 5F – Stairwell Section next to Escalators (15-1 Udagawacho, Shibuya Ward, Tokyo)

https://shibuya.parco.jp/page/xr/

NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019 OVERVIEW

NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019

(English)  https://newview.design/awards/2019/en

(Japanese) https://newview.design/awards/2019/jp

 

■About NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019

As a part of an experimental/community project, the NEWVIEW AWARDS was established as a global award designed especially for VR content developed for the Fashion, Culture, and Art fields. The NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019 was organized this year as the successor to the prestigious award held in 2018.

The future is just around the corner. Soon every creator will be able to easily develop their own three-dimensional spatial expression or (VR) space. The NEWVIEW AWARDS aims to explore and invent new expression, culture, and lifestyle, while discovering the next generation of creators whose pioneering works will help to “design the ultra experience.”

■The Prizes

GOLD Prize (Awarded to 1 Entry): 20,000 USD Prize

SILVER Prize (Awarded to 3 Entries): 5,000 USD Prize

PARCO Prize (Awarded to 1 Entry): One winner is awarded the opportunity to collaborate with PARCO Co., Ltd in development of their next VR artwork. This new artwork will be put on display at Shibuya PARCO

KMNZ Prize (Awarded to 1 Entry): One winner is awarded the opportunity to team up with KMNZ unit to debut their VR artwork

HIDEKI MATSUTAKE Prize (Awarded to 1 Entry): One winner is awarded the opportunity to collaborate with Hideki Matsutake in developing their next VR content

Media Ambition Tokyo Prize (Awarded to 1 Entry): One winner is awarded the opportunity to have their works exhibited at Media Ambition Tokyo

■Board of Judges:

Nemu Yumemi—Yumeminemu’s Lead Manager/Character Producer; Keiichi Matsuda—Designer/Filmmaker; Nick DenBoer—Video Artist; Lu Yang—Artist; Keng-Ming Liu—Founder & Creative Director at Bito; Mitsuru Kuramoto—Broadcast Writer; Sou Ootsuki—Filmmaker/Director; Keisuke Toyoda—Architect at noiz Architects; Akihiro Taniguchi—Artist

 

■Sponsors:

 

■Partners:

 

■Media Partners:

 

■Supporters:

 

Organizers: NEWVIEW PROJECT

ABOUT THE NEWVIEW PROJECT

First launched in January 2018, the NEWVIEW project is an experimental/community project designed to pioneer new forms of creative expressions and methods for designing new experiences in three-dimensional space. With its focal point laid on the fields of Fashion, Music, Motion Graphics, Graphics, Illustrations, etc., together with creators from around the world whose works illustrate urban cultures, the project aims to design the next-generation culture/lifestyle experiences that transcend reality and fantasy. To discover, nurture, and create opportunities for creators to communicate with others, the project has taken the initiative to hold various lectures, meet-up events both within and outside the borders of Japan.

NEWVIEW PROJECT’s Official Website: https://newview.design/

◉ Contact Information: NEWVIEW AWARDS 2019 Organizing Office (Officer in Charge: Watanabe)

info@newview.design

A Press Kit, which includes Logos and other resources for Press Release, is available for download at the link below:

http://bit.ly/36vxMUH