Chris Dorland's VR exhibition FLR-13 explores digital disorientation through glitch aesthetics and paranoia.

Chris Dorland's VR exhibit FLR-13, showcased on Nicoletti Contemporary's digital platform, delves into the eerie realms of virtual environments and the uncertainties of the physical body. This installation features CGI rooms that are interconnected and derived from Nicoletti's real Vyner Street gallery, adorned with red-neon wireframe grids and glitchy video displays. Dorland's digital collages transition from algorithmic chaos to viscous forms akin to haemoglobin, with reflective floors and gridded walls that enhance the feeling of disorientation. Drawing on the superstition surrounding the 13th floor and inspired by Philip K. Dick's themes of reality disintegration, particularly in A Scanner Darkly, FLR-13 parallels Dorland's earlier exhibition Active User, which began in January 2020 but was cut short by lockdowns. The VR experience evokes unsettling sensations reminiscent of early films like The Matrix (1999) and Lawnmower Man (1992). Other artists, including John Armleder and Rob Pruitt, have also ventured into VR exhibitions via platforms like Massimo De Carlo's VirtualSpace, creating synthetic gallery environments with virtual challenges. Dorland's work critically examines how lockdowns heighten our immersion in screen-based realities, where engagement with the outside world dwindles to mere reactions to news and social media. The exhibition has been available online through Nicoletti Digital since its launch on January 10.