Immersive Digital Painting: Insights into Interactive VR-Based Artworks

Published

5-6-2025

Type of Work

Dissertation, exegesis or thesis

PhD Thesis

Project Affiliation

Submission for PhD Thesis

Abstract

This doctoral research project explores how mindfulness can be experienced through immersive creative technologies, such as virtual reality (VR). While virtual technologies have gained attention in the realm of mindfulness research, there remains a notable gap in understanding how mindfulness develops during drawing and painting mandalas within immersive environments. Despite recent progress in mindfulness research and VR technologies (Lu et al., 2023; Mistry et al., 2020; Navarro-Haro et al., 2017; Olasz et al., 2024; Roo et al., 2017; Seabrook et al., 2020; Serrano et al., 2016; Woo & Lee, 2023), flow, immersion, and presence theories warrant further investigation when examining immersive art-based mindfulness and mark-making. Through rigorous methodology and evaluation of art-based practices, this study aims to advance interdisciplinary research. Additionally, by synthesising insights from creative practice, VR technologies, and theoretical frameworks, this project opens new avenues for studying digital painting within a phenomenological approach.

Using qualitative methods, the study involves fourteen participants in examining mindfulness experiences in VR art activities. Research methods include observation, semistructured interviews, video-cued recall and thematic analysis, guided by flow, immersion, and presence theories. Participants engage in structured digital, structured analogue, and nonstructured digital art activities to explore mindfulness across different environments.

From VR mandala artworks to analogue colouring on paper, participants experienced key themes such as mindfulness, mark-making, space, depth perception, sense of time, and agency. This research not only illuminates the interplay between creativity and mindfulness within interactive virtual environments but also holds implications for both academic discourse and practical application. The study benefits researchers and practitioners in understanding how creativity and mark-making can enhance art-based mindfulness in interactive VR environments.

Citation

Puhakka, Heli (2025) Immersive Digital Painting: Insights into Interactive VR-Based Artworks. PhD thesis, Queensland University of Technology.

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