ARQs
A collection of modular architecture made for the metaverse. The 300 unique modules in this collection were inspired by the black and white square patterns found in QR codes. They are open (CC0), interactive and interoperable 3D structures.
LINKS : METAVERSE DEMO / OPENSEA / Presented by PangeaDAO
DATE : May 2023
QR CODE PATTERNS AS
A LOGIC FOR CONSTRUCTION
Across the cryptocurrency movement, QR code imagery has become ubiquitous. From crowdfunds to crypto art, subway platforms to SuperBowls - these black and white patterns have long been the visual language of this emerging technology. Like many of you, these codes represented my first window to the crypto world back in 2016 during meetups of enthusiasts exchanging new tokens between addresses. Back then, these were the banners and building blocks we used to spread knowledge and to rally the construction of new communities.
For ARQs (Q R Architecture) I wanted to take a deeper look into how these patterns are made and how they could be extracted into a new dimension. The composition of a QR code is seemingly random, but each one is actually a detailed diagram of instructions. Every code can be broken down into a 4-part grid and 8 core “mask” patterns - identified here as 000, 001, 010, 011, 100, 101, 110 and 111. With the ARQ Series, the grid and each of these patterns have become translated into building guides, façades and apertures. All together, these cubic forms have been designed to relay the Quick Response Code into 3 Dimensions - utilizing form and function.
MODULAR ARCHITECTURE
MADE FOR THE METAVERSE
The ARQ Series is made up of 7 core building units that are designed to be collected individually and assembled together. They are scaled using a 6 meter grid, formatted as a .glb 3D file with an average file size of 1.5 MB. These factors allow each ARQ to perform well as an interoperable object across metaverse applications and allows for simpler remixing and rescaling. In this example (see video) ARQ modules can be assembled with ease in Hyperfy, supporting complex, inhabitable virtual structures.
Modular 3D assets represent a deeply under-explored collection format across the spectrum of NFTs and metaverse applications. In virtual worlds - today - 3D architecture is almost always a static file installed on a tokenized plot of land. Construction is permanent in the physical world, but virtual architecture doesn’t have to be. In fact, it must be dynamic and made to keep pace with the worlds it engages with. These assets must be upgradable, modifiable, agile structures. ARQs seek to perform in this way - as advanced, interactive architectural objects.
CC0
In an effort to embrace metaverse interoperability, the entire ARQ collection was released into the public domain under a CC0 license. This Creative Commons license provides an open framework for these 3D building blocks to be more widely accessible and freely remixed. It is my view and the view of PangeaDAO that a truly open metaverse must explore and experiment with these new definitions of ownership, freedom of access, and remix culture.
So far, ARQ collectors and metaverse builders have taken these objects across several applications and even into gaming realms like Fortnite through Unreal Engine. (Example here provided by metamike). If you would like to download ARQs, you are free to do so. Explore, using the link below:
DOWNLOAD LINK : FOLDER
