tonwelt, a leading full-service provider of interactive visitor guiding systems, worked with the V&A Museum in London on the successful DIVA exhibition, using its solutions to enable a 100% hands-free visitor experience, with automatically triggered content and lip-sync video synchronization.
The exhibition opened to the public in June 2023 and ran until April 2024. DIVA featured costumes worn by iconic artists, including Whitney Houston‘s floor-length black and gold dress designed by Marc Bouwer and worn in 1994 when she received three Grammys for The Bodyguard soundtrack, Billie Eilish‘s Glastonbury ensemble from 2019, created by Stella McCartney, and Lil Nas X‘s lilac Versace deconstructed suit, worn on the MTV VMA red carpet in 2021. It also showcased five key outfits worn by Rihanna.
A unique sound solution
Speaking to blooloop about the exhibition in 2023, curator Kate Bailey said:
“The exhibition doesn’t provide a single definition of a ‘diva’,” she tells blooloop. “It celebrates how the term has a myriad of meanings. It considers how it has been redefined, subverted and reclaimed across time and genre. We trace the story of the diva from 19th-century opera to a celebration of the diva in music today. This exhibition celebrates how the diva finds their voice and fights for equality and freedoms using their platform and agency to make a difference in society.”
The exhibition included a total of 60 ensembles and 250 artefacts sourced from the V&A collection as well as loans from various locations worldwide. The exhibition encompasses a wide range of disciplines including fashion, photography, design, costumes, music, and live performance.
DIVA paid tribute to the remarkable stories of creativity, ambition, and perseverance of renowned divas, ranging from opera goddesses and silent movie stars to modern-day global superstars. This was achieved through a combination of a theatrical production, a planetarium-style architectural takeover created by BAFTA-winning video designer Tal Rosner, and an immersive audio experience provided by tonwelt.
The diva’s voice was enhanced with a sonic experience created by renowned sound designer Gareth Fry, delivered through tonwelt’s advanced headset technology, which features ambisonics and provides 360-degree surround sound. While guests explored the galleries, the headsets activated performances by various divas, creating an iconic soundtrack that accompanied the entire exhibition.
supraGuide SPHERIC
The supraGuide SPHERIC is a newly developed product by tonwelt, specifically designed for creating immersive visitor experiences and storytelling using 3D audio technology. The product is also in use at the Hôtel de la Marine in Paris and at the Pilsner Urquell Experience in Prague.
The device includes a comprehensive ecosystem and is compatible with the ultra-precise tonwelt trigger points for automatic triggering at both close and medium distances, providing a complete set of tools to wow guests.
“The DIVA sonic experience was made possible by the SPHERIC headphone system provided by tonwelt,” adds Bailey. “From a curatorial perspective, it has been a fantastic opportunity to work alongside creative and technical teams to bring the voices of the DIVA to life. The system has allowed us to create a seamless, immersive journey that interweaves sound, narrative, objects, and space, which is proving popular and engaging for visitors.
“tonwelt has been a pleasure to work with, finding solutions to push the boundaries of sound and music in the museum and exhibition space. In DIVA, the sound is emotional—it encourages visitors to look longer at exhibits and engage in powerful ways with V&A collections.”
