Earlier this summer, artists assembled in San Francisco, Calif., for an event known as the Festival of the Impossible, which was based around how augmented and virtual reality transforms our perspectives and interactions with artwork. Attendees used devices like tablets to browse the beautifully crafted exhibits, which turned them into live projections. These projects offered visitors a glimpse into the unique ability of augmented reality (AR) to tell immersive and interactive stories through art.

Many of the festival’s exhibitors believed there are two qualities making AR a distinct and innovative medium for artists. The immersive element pertains to our binocular point of view (which is about 120 degrees), of which we only use about 10-30 percent when looking at a screen or portrait, something virtual and augmented reality changes by incorporating many environmental elements into the user’s experience. The second is interactivity, since AR leaps off the screen and essentially becomes part of the physical world.

Many artists who attended the Festival of the Impossible think the current state of usage for AR among artists signifies the beginning of an innovative upheaval like we’ve previously witnessed in other technologies like film and photography. The video, below, highlights some of the main exhibits at the festival that came to life using AR technology, demonstrating this technology’s its true potential to revolutionize how we view and interact with art.