Sneak peek of a virtual game featuring a reimagined tour through Digbeth - Kultura Sessions: Brum

Digbeth has become the inspiration of an innovative virtual game showcasing Birmingham’s Creative Quarter like never before.

As you tour through the stunning cyber reinterpretation of Gibb Street and the Custard Factory you find the familiar industrial streets littered with colourful art installations and popular works from Birmingham Museums Trust’s collections - all ready and waiting for gamers to visit and explore.

The exciting vision, KULTURA Sessions: Brum, is to be placed onto a massive multiplayer online video game on Occupy White Walls Video Game and Art Platform (OWW) and it will make its free debut at 8pm on Tuesday, October 11 in a livestream by high-profile Twitch influencers Blue and Queenie - and you do not need to be a gamer or to be registered to watch through Twitch.

It is inspired by music festivals and showcases Brummie artists and music and also features a Birmingham-inspired gallery in the metaverse.

Six West Midlands performers will have their music, poetry and art beamed globally on the platform – musician Ace Ambrose, moving image artist De’Anne Crooks, musician Dorcha, poet Jasmine Gardosi, new media artist Antonio Roberts and mixed-media poet Samiir Saunders.

Following its Twitch premiere gamers across the world can then re-visit the music performances and immerse themselves in the Kultura Sessions: Brum through the game (OWW), available via download platform Steam.

The virtual game has been commissioned by Birmingham Museums Trust (BMT).

What have the creators said about the online game inspired by Birmingham?

Linda Spurdle, Head of Digital at Birmingham Museums, said: “We’re excited to be taking the creativity of Birmingham into the virtual world of Occupy White Walls.

“We’d previously partnered with OWW to add Birmingham art collections and even a version of Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery to the game, and this project was inspired by the fact that you can now add sound to the game. We thought it would be great to have an event or festival, showcasing Birmingham artists, but what we have is even better than that, as they have created a Digbeth-inspired cityscape within the game for players all over the world to visit.

“We’re pleased that influencers Blue and Queenie will be livestreaming it on Twitch for everyone to enjoy. This R&D project was funded by The Space, who do so much to help arts organisations to innovate using digital means.”

Rosa Francesca, Creative Producer & Artist, said: “I specifically reached out to local Birmingham and West Midlands musicians and spoken word artists to include their work in this project. These are artists who I consider to be an important part of Birmingham’s culture, doing innovative and progressive things in the arts and music scene and bringing fresh sounds and varied, cross-genre music. Some of the artists are using this opportunity to release previously unheard recordings which is particularly exciting.

“In creating an event with such a strong focus on music and sound into a game which is already so immersive, we are hoping to inspire conversation about how visual art and music can create a richer sensory experience in MMO games. I am very grateful for Birmingham Museums Trust’s involvement with this project and hope to be part of more collaborations with BMT and Occupy White Walls in the future.”

Fiona Morris, CEO and Creative Director of The Space, said: “The Space is delighted to be supporting Birmingham Museums Trust on the KULTURA Sessions: BRUM . This exciting, immersive digital experience invites users to see and hear music and art from an exciting range of Birmingham artists. We are sure this will provide a fantastic sense of place and ignite an interest in the city’s culture through digital means.”

Yarden Yaroshevski, founder and CEO of KULTURA Ex Machina, added: “This collaboration is a terrific example of how immersive technology and AI can help promote and discover artists who don’t normally get access to the elitist art world hegemony. Linda at BMAG along with Rosa and The Space are breaking new ground by experimenting with cool new opportunities presented by technology. It was awesome to work with them and we hope to do even cooler stuff in the future.”

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