MULTISENSORY PERCEPTION IN PHYSICAL AND VIRTUAL EXHIBITION SPACES: A COMPARATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR DESIGN

Yıl 2026, Cilt: 16 Sayı: 1, 237 - 247, 01.01.2026

Okan Şimşek

https://doi.org/10.7456/tojdac.1797648

Öz

Spatial perception is a multidimensional process shaped by the integration of multiple senses that define how individuals experience and interpret their environment. This study investigates differences in sensory perception between physical and virtual exhibition spaces and proposes design strategies to enhance multisensory engagement in digital environments. The research adopts a qualitative and comparative approach, drawing on interdisciplinary literature from architecture, art, and communication fields. Through this analytical framework, the study examines how sensory coherence is established in physical spaces and how it can be simulated or reinterpreted in virtual contexts. The findings reveal that physical exhibitions naturally integrate visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, and thermal cues, fostering embodied experience, spatial belonging, and memory. In contrast, virtual exhibitions remain primarily audiovisual, offering limited sensory depth. However, technological developments such as haptic interfaces, scent diffusers, and thermal feedback systems hold potential to enrich digital experiences. The study concludes that integrating multisensory design and narrative coherence can transform virtual exhibitions into more immersive and meaningful cultural environments.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Spatial perception , Multisensory experience , Virtual exhibition design , Physical exhibition space

FİZİKSEL VE SANAL SERGİ MEKANLARINDA ÇOKLU DUYUSAL ALGI: TASARIMA YÖNELİK KARŞILAŞTIRMALI BİR ÇERÇEVE

Öz

Mekân algısı, bireylerin çevrelerini nasıl deneyimlediklerini ve yorumladıklarını belirleyen çok boyutlu bir süreçtir ve birden fazla duyu arasında kurulan etkileşimle şekillenir. Bu çalışma, fiziksel ve sanal sergi mekânları arasındaki duyusal algı farklılıklarını inceleyerek dijital ortamlarda çoklu duyusal etkileşimi güçlendirmeye yönelik tasarım stratejileri önermektedir. Araştırma, mimarlık, sanat ve iletişim disiplinlerinden yararlanan nitel ve karşılaştırmalı bir yaklaşım benimsemektedir. Bu kuramsal çerçeve aracılığıyla, fiziksel mekânlarda kurulan duyusal bütünlüğün sanal ortamlarda nasıl simüle edilebileceği veya yeniden yorumlanabileceği tartışılmıştır. Bulgular, fiziksel sergilerin görsel, işitsel, dokunsal, kokusal ve ısısal uyaranları bütünleştirerek bedensel deneyimi, mekânsal aidiyeti ve belleği güçlendirdiğini göstermektedir. Buna karşın, sanal sergiler çoğunlukla görsel-işitsel düzeyde kalmakta ve algısal derinliği sınırlı biçimde yansıtmaktadır. Ancak haptik arayüzler, koku difüzörleri ve ısısal geribildirim sistemleri gibi teknolojik yenilikler, dijital deneyimleri zenginleştirme potansiyeli taşımaktadır. Çalışma, çoklu duyusal tasarım ve anlatısal bütünlüğün sanal sergileri daha etkileyici ve anlamlı kültürel mekânlara dönüştürebileceğini vurgulamaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Mekân algısı , Çoklu duyusal deneyim , Sanal sergi tasarımı , Fiziksel sergi mekânı

Kaynakça

• Avni, Y., Danial-Saad, A., Sheidin, J., & Kuflik, T. (2025). Enhancing museum accessibility for blind and low vision visitors through interactive multimodal tangible interfaces. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 198, 103469. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.IJHCS.2025.103469
• Candlin, F. (2009). Art, museums and touch. Manchester University Press.
• Carroll, F., Pigott, J., Taylor, A., Thorne, S., & Pinney, J. (2023). Creative Environmental Exhibition: Revealing Insights through Multi-Sensory Museum Experiences and Vignette Analysis for Enhanced Audience Engagement. Heritage, 7(1), 76–94. https://doi.org/10.3390/HERITAGE7010003
• Cooper, D. E. (1984). Metaphors We Live By. Royal Institute of Philosophy Lecture Series, 18. https://doi.org/10.1017/s135824610000309x
• de Kluis, T., Romp, S., & Land-Zandstra, A. M. (2024). Science museum educators’ views on object-based learning: The perceived importance of authenticity and touch. Public Understanding of Science, 33(3), 325–342. https://doi.org/10.1177/09636625231202617
• Falk, J. H., & Dierking, L. D. (2016). The Museum Experience. In The Museum Experience. Taylor and Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315417899/MUSEUM-EXPERIENCE-JOHN-FALK-LYNN-DIERKING/RIGHTS-AND-PERMISSIONS
• Gayathri, R., & Nam, S. (2024). Enhancing User Experience in Virtual Museums: Impact of Finger Vibrotactile Feedback. Applied Sciences, 14(15), 6593. https://doi.org/10.3390/APP14156593
• Gotlib, D., Lipka, K., & Świech, H. (2025). Interactive Indoor Audio-Map as a Digital Equivalent of the Tactile Map. Applied Sciences, 15(16), 8975. https://doi.org/10.3390/APP15168975
• Harada, T., Hideyoshi, Y., Gressier-Soudan, E., & Jean, C. (2018). Museum Experience Design Based On Multi-Sensory Transformation Approach. International Design Conference - Design 2018, 5, 2221–2228. https://doi.org/10.21278/IDC.2018.0150
• Harris, D. J., Buckingham, G., Wilson, M. R., & Vine, S. J. (2019). Virtually the same? How impaired sensory information in virtual reality may disrupt vision for action. Experimental Brain Research, 237(11), 2761. https://doi.org/10.1007/S00221-019-05642-8
• Herz, R. S. (2016). The Role of Odor-Evoked Memory in Psychological and Physiological Health. Brain Sciences, 6(3), 22. https://doi.org/10.3390/BRAINSCI6030022
• Iggena, D., Jeung, S., Maier, P. M., Ploner, C. J., Gramann, K., & Finke, C. (2023). Multisensory input modulates memory-guided spatial navigation in humans. Communications Biology, 6(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1038/S42003-023-05522-6;SUBJMETA
• Kirsch, W., & Kunde, W. (2023). On the Role of Interoception in Body and Object Perception: A Multisensory-Integration Account. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 18(2), 321–339. https://doi.org/10.1177/17456916221096138
• Kwon, J., & Iedema, A. (2022). Body and the Senses in Spatial Experience: The Implications of Kinesthetic and Synesthetic Perceptions for Design Thinking. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 864009. https://doi.org/10.3389/FPSYG.2022.864009/BIBTEX
• Li, J., Zheng, X., Watanabe, I., & Ochiai, Y. (2024). A systematic review of digital transformation technologies in museum exhibition. Computers in Human Behavior, 161, 108407. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CHB.2024.108407
• Luo, D., Doucé, L., & Nys, K. (2024). Multisensory museum experience: an integrative view and future research directions. Museum Management and Curatorship, 39, 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/09647775.2024.2357071
• Meng, W., & Dolah, J. (2025). From Virtual Museum Experience Quality to Offline Visit Intention: A Cultural Identity Mediation Model for Sustainable Heritage Engagement. Sustainability, 17(23), 10664. https://doi.org/10.3390/SU172310664
• Murillo, A. P., Cristina, M., & Williams, R. (2025). Visitors’ Perception of the Importance and Performance of Multisensory Dimensions: The Case of the Philippine National Museum of Natural History. Journal of Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 3(7), 495–504. https://doi.org/10.69569/JIP.2025.149
• Nam, S., Kang, D., Jo, J.-W., Reinagel Boston, P., Laughlin Cambridge, S., -, U., Kahn, J. C., Peretz, D. J., Damayanti, R., Putra Redyantanu, B., & Kossak, F. (2021). A study of multi-sensory senses in museum virtual-visits. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 907(1), 012020. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/907/1/012020
• Norberg-Schulz, C. (1971). Existence, space and architecture. Praeger Publishers.
• Pallasmaa, J. (2009). The Thinking Hand: Existential and Embodied Wisdom in Architecture. Wiley.
• Pietroni, E. (2025). Multisensory Museums, Hybrid Realities, Narration, and Technological Innovation: A Discussion Around New Perspectives in Experience Design and Sense of Authenticity. Heritage, 8(4), 130. https://doi.org/10.3390/HERITAGE8040130
• Popovici, D. M., Iordache, D., Comes, R., Neamțu, C. G. D., & Băutu, E. (2022). Interactive Exploration of Virtual Heritage by Means of Natural Gestures. Applied Sciences, 12(9), 4452. https://doi.org/10.3390/APP12094452/S1
• Spence, C. (2020a). Scenting the Anosmic Cube: On the Use of Ambient Scent in the Context of the Art Gallery or Museum. I-Perception, 11(6). https://doi.org/10.1177/2041669520966628
• Spence, C. (2020b). Senses of place: architectural design for the multisensory mind. 5(1), 1–26. https://cognitiveresearchjournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41235-020-00243-4
• Stavroulakis, P. I., Pagano, A., Boracchi, B., Siozos, P., Sotiropoulou, S., Leonhardt, E., Sabatier, V., Trumpy, G., & Sandu, I. C. A. (2025). Tactile 3D-printed media interaction with the color surface features of paintings. The case of the Scream (1910?) painting. Frontiers in Computer Science, 7, 1597880. https://doi.org/10.3389/FCOMP.2025.1597880/BIBTEX
• Verbeek, C., Leemans, I., & Fleming, B. (2022). How can scents enhance the impact of guided museum tours? towards an impact approach for olfactory museology. The Senses and Society, 17(3), 315–342. https://doi.org/10.1080/17458927.2022.2142012
• Wang, S. (2020). Museum as a Sensory Space: A Discussion of Communication Effect of Multi-Senses in Taizhou Museum. Sustainability 2020, Vol. 12, Page 3061, 12(7), 3061. https://doi.org/10.3390/SU12073061
• Xu, H., Li, Y., & Tian, F. (2025). Contrasting Physical and Virtual Museum Experiences: A Study of Audience Behavior in Replica-Based Environments. Sensors, 25(13), 4046. https://doi.org/10.3390/S25134046
• Yeon, J., Kim, J., Ryu, J., Park, J. Y., Chung, S. C., & Kim, S. P. (2017). Human brain activity related to the tactile perception of stickiness. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 11, 227587. https://doi.org/10.3389/FNHUM.2017.00008/BIBTEX
• Yuan, L. (2025). Museum of Food and Drink. Retrieved: October 2025 From. http://www.mofad.org/flavor/
• Zhang, J., Wei, Q., Wei, X., & Fan, M. (2024). Exploring the Design of Virtual Reality Museums to Support Remote Visitation With Older Adults. ArXiv.