Semantic 3D Models and Virtual Environments for Narrating and Learning the Heritage’s Cultural Contents

In recent years the use of virtual reality for heritage knowledge has greatly increased. This trend had a further boost during the health emergency due to COVID 19, when numerous virtual tours attempted to replace live visits. However, in the absence of targeted planning of the figurative apparatuses, the attention has shifted more to the technological and spectacular aspects rather than the perceptive and communicative ones. However, we must highlight that the virtual environment is mainly a drawn space, therefore it conveys spatial information through graphic signs which must be appropriately selected and semanticized in order to effectively communicate the morphological qualities of the architectural space. The ICAR 17 disciplines have the scientific tools and interpretative keys needed to intervene as a guide in the representations of virtual environments, often not harmonious with the purpose of the representation itself, focusing the gaze on the user and his interaction with the space. The present study uses an innovative VR design for communicating the heritage with a human-centered approach, to narrate not only the visible contents of the heritage but also its theoretical and semantic features. This method could shift the focus from the technological instrument to the user, in order to enhance the potential of 3D models and virtual reality as educative media for improving the quality of communication and learning for all of architectural heritage’s cultural contents.