Thesis Studio in VR Design
| Shenzhen Technology University, School of Design and Innovation | Environmental Design Thesis | Instructors: Cheng Zeng, Meikang Li | Spring 2025 |
This thesis studio explored how virtual reality can extend the spatial imagination and social meaning of built environments. Two student projects exemplify the pedagogical experiment:
The Permanent Shelter by Xiahan Song rethinks urban cemetery design through the integration of VR-based memorial experiences. By merging physical landscapes with immersive virtual rituals, the project proposes new modes of remembrance that balance emotional intimacy with spatial efficiency.
Leap Beyond by Huabin Lin reimagines a dense urban-village site as an interactive exercise hub. Through redirected walking, multi-user VR interaction, and reprogrammed spatial layers, the project transforms an underused community building into a collective space for embodied play and health.
The studio used VR as both design medium and research lens—testing how embodied interaction, digital ritual, and virtual spatial extension could inform future human–space relationships.
