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A centerpiece of Eyes of Freedom is ‘Silent Battle.’ This statue, of a serviceman grieving as he holds the dog tags of a fallen comrade, is seen as visitors to the immersive exhibit would experience it through a virtual reality headset. Photo by Patrick Clark.

Twenty years ago, Lima Company—a reserve infantry unit in the Marine Corps—was activated and deployed to Iraq, where the company suffered intense losses.

The stories of that unit, and the 23 service members killed in action that year, have been told around the country through a traveling exhibition that includes paintings of the fallen veterans, along with the boots they wore in combat.

Now, thanks to the College of Communication, Media, Design and Information at �鶹��Ѱ�����Boulder, the stories behind this memorial could enjoy a much wider reach. Owing to technology in the college’s Immersive Media Lab, an extended version of the exhibit may soon allow audiences to experience and interact with the project virtually.

“It’s a really good way to bring art and technology together, but beyond that, it’s a way to put an important focus on how we honor service and sacrifice,” said Patrick Clark, an assistant professor of critical media practices and director of the lab. “Hopefully, people walk away with an understanding of what our service members have given to our country, sacrificed for us—and leave with a sense of connection to these real human beings that were just like a lot of us.”

In , the artist Anita Miller created larger-than-life paintings of casual moments in her subjects’ lives, as well as a statue called “Silent Battle”—showing a grieving warrior holding the dog tag of his friend—prominently displayed. Placards and information panels tell the stories of the men who were killed in combat.

Battling trauma, post-traumatic stress

Seeing it in person offers a kind of raw emotion that can be hard to capture virtually. But the virtual exhibition allows the story of these servicemen to reach places that the full experience cannot. Miller was inspired to create this project as a way to help veterans struggling with loss, trauma and post-traumatic stress.

“Pat’s work really opens up the doors to so many possibilities—veterans in hospice, chaplains in military bases, retreat centers,” she said. “To me, this exhibit is a therapeutic tool to get to the deepest parts of ourselves—and with virtual reality, we can bring this tool to more people and allow them to experience the healing of it from anywhere.”

Clark, a filmmaker and visual artist, has been a driving force behind the Immersive Media Lab since it opened in 2018. From its humble origins as a closet in Folsom Field, the lab has expanded to house top-of-the-line headsets, cameras and sensors that allow students to create unique journalism projects, games, documentaries and other interactive projects.

Thanks to the technology in the lab, Clark was able to enlist students in scanning the artwork as well as some of the artifacts Miller collected, like letters from the servicemen that virtual visitors can interact with.

“In terms of the college, this is a great example of how we find different ways to tell stories to ensure they create impact,” Clark said. “How does technology change the way we’re telling the story, or how that story resonates with people? Those are things we’re interested in, whether you’re talking about journalism, documentaries or anything else.”

Climbing the statue

While this is the first time the immersive experience will be displayed, a beta test over the summer was well attended, and identified a few bugs for Clark to squish, like participants loading into the corners of the exhibit, or being able to climb the “Silent Battle” statue, “which I don’t think is something Anita intended,” Clark said.

In fact, the statue is a linchpin of the exhibit. Miller modeled it on Brian Zimmermann, who shared his experiences in Iraq with the artist and helped her understand the exhibit could be more than a testament to sacrifice.

“He described this scene of seeing his friend sitting on the floor, holding the dog tags of guys who had just died,” Miller said. “I told him I was looking for something uplifting and hopeful. He said to me, ‘You don’t understand, You don’t just go from the depths of darkness to reaching the light—it’s too big of a step. The first step in healing is knowing you’re not alone. And if you make that sculpture, other people will know they’re not alone with their pain.’” ��

That’s what she hopes the immersive edition of Eyes of Freedom can accomplish. The showcase, and survey data taken from participants, can help guide next steps, like releasing it to app stories or installing it on headsets and sending them to schools, hospitals and the like.

“I had one person who told me she preferred the virtual, because she was able to experience it without the distractions of other people,” Miller said. “It can be a much more personal and meditative experience when you have time with the art and aren’t rushed to get out of there.”

For his part, Clark said he hopes students leave the exhibit with an understanding of the sacrifice these veterans made in service of their country.

“These people were the same age as the students in my classes. In another world, these could have been their peers,” he said. “And if the VR portion of it makes it more engaging or appealing, or just more accessible, to students, and gets them to take a moment to appreciate the memory of these guys, then I think we’ll have accomplished something important.”

Patrick Clark uses a camera to scan one of the paintings that make up Eyes of Freedom just outside the Immersive Media Lab. Working with students, Clark scanned the paintings and other artifacts from the exhibit to make them accessible via virtual reality headset.

Joe Arney covers research and general news for the college.