Reality’s Fugue: Genesis

It is commonplace to believe that who we are—our true nature—is anchored in our individuality, our uniqueness. Reality’s Fugue, the book and the virtual reality experience, argue that our true nature is not so easily explained. A puzzle lies at the heart of everything we know. We are not just individuals, we are both individuals and collective beings, both one and many simultaneously.

Reality’s Fugue: Genesis is a virtual reality experience about this puzzle.

“A puzzle within a puzzle—
the gateway to the ultimate mysteries.”
— Tao te Ching

Reality’s Fugue: Genesis was exhibited at New Hope Arts, New Hope, Pennsylvania, January 20 – February 10, 2024 with an opening reception on Saturday, January 20, 2024, from 4:00 to 7:00 P.M with an artist’s talk at 5:00 P.M.

Samuel Brainard, in his book Reality’s Fugue: Reconciling Worldviews in Science, Religions, and Philosophy, asserts that a puzzle lies at the center of everything we’re aware of. It hides the true nature of ourselves and the fundamental nature of the universe we live in.

This approach challenges the exclusionist notion that only one worldview can be correct. It presents an alternative mode of understanding using Douglas Hofstadter’s metaphor of a musical fugue that he describes in Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid. Different “voices” and “melodies” of worldviews coexist in counterpoint and conversation. At the same time, each perspective remains distinct; none is privileged.

Reality’s Fugue: Genesis immerses participants in a virtual world that provides a new take on the Genesis origin story to suggest how we create a shared world and hopefully to catalyze conversation.

Credits
Produced and Directed by F. Samuel Brainard and David Tamés
Contributing Artists: Carol Cruickshanks, Susanne Pitak-Davis, Aurelle Purdy Sprout, Stacie Speer Scott
Unity Developer: Patrick Nugent
3D Artists: Patrick Nugent and Katerina Pak
Composer: Linda Erickson
Narration Written by Jenny Paschall
Narrator: Fran Perlman
Technical Consultants: Danger Donaghey, Oscar Keyes, Matt Seibert
Special Thanks: New Hope Arts, Stanley Timek and Bucks County Community College Media Center, Susan Bindig, Robert Bullington, Jeffrey Jacobson, Ryan Murray, Carol Parker, Celia Pearce, Elizabeth A. Stier

Viewing the work
If you want to view the work, contact me about obtaining the APK file for the Meta Quest 2 or Quest 3 headset. Knowledge of side-loading using Sidequest is required to install this experience on the headset. It will not run on the Quest 1.