Virtual reality museum offers glimpses into life during WWII

STEP into the pages of history with futuristic virtual reality gear at the Perak Museum in Taiping.

This one-of-a-kind exhibition allows visitors to have an immersive experience of participating in a virtual walk through a wooden house during the Japanese occupation of Malaya.

Set in a special room, visitors can feel as if they are stepping into a bygone era.

Project leader Dr Cheryl Nicholas said visitors could “see” and experience for themselves the living room, kitchen and backyard of a home in Malaya in the 1940s during World War II (WWII).

“The house design is a blend of diverse cultural and social categories,” she said, adding that the exhibition also featured snippets of stories from 20 WWII survivors.

“Some of the furniture and objects featured belonged to the survivors from this project.

“Visitors can move around the rooms or spaces and click on highlighted items which will open a short video montage of WWII stories from the survivors,” she added.

Dr Nicholas, who is a Pennsylvania State University Communication Arts and Sciences and Global Studies associate professor, said the survivors’ stories provided a historical context of everyday life during that time.

“More importantly, these are stories not shared in history books as they are the stories of ordinary people, passed on mainly among families.

“As an academic, I have come to realise the potency of such storytelling.

“Not just as family stories or historical data, but also as cultural stories and as ways we preserve our memories of who we are, and how we shape who we become,” she said, adding that visitors could also watch a pre-recorded tour of the houses.

“As the storytellers pass on, so too will their stories.

“I have conducted oral history interviews with over 20 people in 2013 and now, 10 years later, here I am with this exhibit, with only four of the WWII survivors still alive,” she added.

Dr Nicholas, who grew up in Malaysia, said the exhibition was inspired by her father and grandfather, who told her about their experiences during the Japanese Occupation.

She said their tales about soldiers, sirens, bombs and beheadings had initially frightened her but at the same time, fascinated her as well.

“Through their stories, I discovered the different layers and dimensions of their lives, made possible by the histories and events that shaped them.

“Those layers, imbued by war and devastation, helped them see the world very differently from the way I saw that same world,” she said.

“They did not take their lives for granted and they were always thankful for peaceful times.

“Through their stories I found a connection to them, to other members of my family long gone and to others who shared similar experiences with their older family members,” she added.

The exhibition is part of the museum’s “Semarak@Muzium Perak” programme and will run from now until Sept 30.