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The Immersive Experience Project
Client
City of Bellingham
Type of Client
Civic
Category
Temporary Activation
Year
2025
Impact
4 downtown vacancies were activated and highly attended by people of all ages during First Friday art walks in the spring and summer. Multiple vacancies were filled in part because of exposure from this installation.
Video
Like a vacant house, vacant storefronts are challenging for an urban neighborhood. We want people to feel the vibrancy of city life, with pedestrians moving between businesses and accepting invitations to explore new possibilities for our future. So, we asked ourselves, why let these spaces sit empty?
The Immersive Experience Project (IEP) is a series of installations conceived by Paper Whale, inspired by the Art House Project in Japan. It offers a moment in time with a goal to utilize vacant spaces in the interim during (what we hope to help ensure is) a short-term vacancy.
Each immersive experience invited a local artist selected from a pool of applicants to fill a space with an alternate reality for the passersby invited to step inside. With each space playing host to multiple openings and unique events during its three-month stay, the installations were also designed to be temporary, inspiring our community to take pause and look more closely in the moment while also helping property owners secure a long-term tenant.
