The Meadows in Unity: A Walk Through Time
This project builds on an earlier coursework exploration of The Meadows, expanding the initial concept into a dynamic, immersive virtual experience. My previous project, titled "Temporal Loom," sought to use physical installations and projections to engage visitors with The Meadows' rich historical and environmental narrative. The aim was to inspire reflection on the importance of preserving this unique green space for future generations.
The Meadows, with its deep cultural and historical layers, offers more than a recreational escape; it stands as a reminder of natural beauty within an urban setting. As explored in the initial coursework, The Meadows is a space where visitors experience a unique blend of relaxation, community, and connection to nature. Many feel a sense of peace, safety, and happiness within its boundaries, and the park’s positive influence is deeply personal and varied among individuals. This understanding laid the foundation for my This project, which seeks to preserve and amplify these qualities in a digital form.
Recognizing the significance of The Meadows and inspired by its impact on visitors, I developed this interactive virtual installation to offer users an experience that simulates "walking through time." Using a game-like environment built in Unity and custom 3D models crafted in 3ds Max, this project enables users to explore The Meadows’ past, present, and potential future. Unlike the previous project, which relied on physical installations, this iteration leverages digital immersion to reach audiences in a way that is accessible and interactive, prompting them to consider the role of preservation and sustainability in a new light. This transition from a physical installation to a digital experience not only enhances accessibility but also expands the reach of the project’s core message: the importance of understanding and safeguarding The Meadows for generations to come.
The Meadows, in unity
The start window designed.
The essence of this project is a virtual journey through The Meadows, achieved through a blend of interactive digital environments and time-shifting portals that transport users across historical, present, and future visions of the park. Upon entering the virtual space, users find themselves in a digital replica of The Meadows. By interacting with distinct portals, they can move between time periods, experiencing The Meadows in its past, present, and speculative future.
In the "past" section, users are immersed in a historically accurate portrayal of The Meadows, with atmospheric details that highlight its evolution as a social space over the years. Moving to the "present" portal, users experience a faithful representation of the park as it exists today—a vibrant communal area where people gather, relax, and connect with nature. The "future" portal, however, serves as a thought-provoking space that imagines The Meadows if left unpreserved. Here, users glimpse a deteriorated landscape, symbolizing the consequences of neglect, aiming to inspire reflection on sustainability.
To enhance the immersive experience, the design incorporates digital cues, such as changes in lighting, sound, and ambient effects, to emphasize the transitions across time. Interactive features, including virtual memorial benches, allow users to engage with stories of those who have contributed to the park's history and even participate by making donations through an integrated user interface.
The point
The Meadows
Why did I create this? Because I believe learning about history and the environment doesn’t have to be boring—it can be interactive, emotional, and even fun! The primary purpose of this project is educational, aiming to provoke reflection on how human choices affect the natural world. The Meadows has a rich historical background, and I wanted to create something that would bring that history to life while also making users aware of their role in preserving such spaces.
Portels in unity
The portals to the future serve as a powerful narrative tool, forcing users to consider the environmental impact of neglect. By showing them the possible consequences of today's actions, the experience underscores the urgency of conservation. In short, this project is designed to engage people emotionally and intellectually, encouraging them to think about sustainability, history, and the importance of natural spaces.
Serious stuff
Research and Concept Development
Meadows accommodating people for summer festivals
In the early stages of my project, my goal was simple: to capture the essence of The Meadows and present it in a way that resonated deeply with modern visitors. Initially, I envisioned it as a traditional museum setup—a structured environment where people could move through displays of artifacts and images, passively absorbing the park’s history. It felt clean and informative, a logical way to preserve The Meadows' story. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I wanted something beyond observation. I wanted visitors to feel like they were part of The Meadows' journey through time, not just spectators to its history. This wasn’t just about facts; it was about creating a connection, a way for people to walk back in time and understand the park as a living, evolving space.
To move beyond static displays, I needed to understand what The Meadows truly meant to its visitors today. I began with on-site research, using a mix of semi-structured interviews and field observations to gather insights into how people experienced the space. I recruited participants from Gen Z—those born between 1995 and 2010—specifically looking for local residents who regularly spent time in The Meadows. This demographic, bridging traditional and digital experiences, brought unique perspectives on the park’s role in a modern, urban landscape. My interviews were open-ended, designed to draw out personal reflections, while my observations focused on behaviors, capturing how people interacted with the park: walking, reading, cycling, even just relaxing. These interactions told a story in themselves, one of a space that was as dynamic as it was peaceful.
Back at my desk, I began analyzing the data through thematic analysis, clustering responses to uncover patterns and insights. The results painted a vivid picture: visitors associated The Meadows with relaxation, peace, and even safety. Some described it as a refuge in a fast-paced city; others saw it as a timeless backdrop for gatherings with friends and family. What surprised me was how strongly people felt about preserving these qualities for future generations. Although few knew the park’s historical background, they all valued its present-day impact. They wanted future generations to feel the same calm, the same sense of belonging. This realization became the heart of my project: the idea that The Meadows was more than just a physical space—it was an evolving legacy that deserved to be preserved and shared.
Inspired by this understanding, I conceptualized my initial project, "Temporal Loom," as an immersive installation divided into three distinct sections representing The Meadows' past, present, and future. Each part aimed to capture the unique spirit of the park through sensory cues and subtle storytelling. In the "past" section, visitors would step into an environment that recreated The Meadows as it might have been centuries ago, with historical visuals, sounds, and even temperature changes that conveyed an authentic atmosphere. The "present" section, by contrast, was an open space representing the park as it is today—a lively, green sanctuary within the city. And then came the "future" section, where I wanted visitors to face a stark choice: a vision of a neglected Meadows, overrun by urban decay, prompting them to reflect on the environmental costs of inaction.
Reflecting on the initial project, I saw opportunities for improvement, particularly in making the experience feel more personal and interactive. What if visitors could not only walk through The Meadows’ history but also shape it in small ways? And what if they could take this experience home, exploring the park’s story in a digital space that felt just as immersive? Inspired by these questions, I began developing the project as a computer-based experience, shifting from a physical installation to a virtual format built in Unity. This change allowed me to bring the project to a broader audience, providing a downloadable experience for both Mac and Windows users. In this format, visitors could interact with portals representing different time periods, journeying through The Meadows’ past, present, and possible futures with greater agency and engagement.
Brainstorming and Initial Design
The first iteration of the concept allows viewers to see a current object and how it looked in the ancient era.
In reimagining the project, I began to rethink the three-section museum format, which felt restrictive. Moving through separate physical areas interrupted the flow of experiencing The Meadows’ timeline. I wanted a solution that would allow users to engage with the park’s transformations seamlessly, without the physical boundaries that separated each era. The idea of a single interactive wall emerged—a “window” into different times, where users could view the past, present, and future of The Meadows in one continuous scene. Standing before this digital wall, visitors would witness the park’s evolution without having to transition between sections, creating a sense of immersion and connection in a simpler, more focused layout.
Iteration on the start screen.
The concept evolved naturally into a digital format, expanding its accessibility and impact. This transition led to the Unity-based interactive experience we’re discussing now. In this virtual version, users are no longer constrained by physical space or installation requirements. Instead, they can explore The Meadows’ past, present, and speculative future directly on their own devices, moving at their own pace and immersing themselves in the park’s story from anywhere.
Two portals to different time periods placed in the meadows in Unity.
Unity became the ideal platform to bring this experience to life. It allowed me to create an interactive, immersive environment where users could step into different eras of The Meadows through digital portals. These portals serve as gateways between time periods, each one offering a unique perspective on the park. Entering the past, users find themselves surrounded by historical visuals and sounds that recreate The Meadows as it once was. Moving through the present portal, they experience a familiar, current-day view of the park, alive with nature and activity. And finally, stepping into the future, they encounter a speculative world that reflects the potential consequences of neglect, encouraging a thoughtful look at the importance of preservation.
The virtual space in Unity also allowed for deeper engagement through interactive elements like memorial benches. These benches not only add layers of history, revealing stories of those who shaped The Meadows, but also invite users to reflect on their own role within this evolving landscape. By combining the portals with these personal elements, the Unity project provides a cohesive, reflective journey through time, letting users engage with The Meadows’ history, present, and future—all from the comfort of their own devices.
Building the Prototype
The project began with extensive research into environmental psychology, historical preservation, and interactive design. I studied how interactive experiences could influence emotional connections to natural spaces, and I based my work on constructivist learning theories (thanks, Piaget and Vygotsky!). I also conducted interviews with Gen Zparticipants to understand their tech preferences, as they were my target audience.
Mapping the scale and area of the meadows from Google Maps for 3D asset creation.
Next, I worked on conceptualizing the space and structure. I wanted the virtual version of The Meadows to be more than just a pretty setting—it had to serve as an interactive educational experience. Early on, I experimented with architectural forms that would symbolize the flow of time, eventually landing on a structure that uses portals as gateways between the park’s past, present, and future. This trinity of spaces is more than a visual spectacle; it’s designed to evoke emotional responses and prompt users to reflect on their role in shaping the environment.
A failed attempt to fetch 3D data from Google Maps using a Blender plugin—it's low poly and works, but not suitable for this purpose.
After finalizing the concept for an immersive digital experience of The Meadows, I began by setting out to recreate the park digitally, aiming to bring its distinctive ambiance and historical layers to life. My initial approach was to use Blender, primarily due to its feature that allows visualization of maps in 3D. I hoped this tool would enable me to directly translate a digital map of The Meadows into a three-dimensional space, capturing the area’s real-world layout and significant features with accuracy. However, I soon discovered that Blender’s map visualization tools were limited and incompatible with the specific details needed for The Meadows. Despite various attempts to work around these limitations, the results fell short, as the outputs lacked the precision and fidelity I envisioned for the project’s immersive quality. Realizing that Blender wouldn’t meet these requirements, I decided to take a different approach, building the environment from scratch to ensure every detail was in place.
Given Blender’s limitations, I turned to 3ds Max, a software I am familiar with due to my civil engineering background. This shift provided a high level of control over details, allowing me to achieve the depth and accuracy necessary for the project. With a collection of site photographs, videos, and satellite imagery of The Meadows as references, I started constructing low-poly models of each essential element within the park. These included items such as benches, natural foliage, and various landscape features. By overlying these models onto a scaled Google Map of the area, I ensured that each feature’s placement was geographically accurate. The low-poly design also allowed the models to perform efficiently without compromising visual appeal. Each model was crafted one by one, from ground textures to individual trees and pathways, forming a cohesive digital landscape. After a considerable amount of work, the assembled scene was finally exported as an FBX file and imported into Unity, where I could continue with the interactive aspects of the project.
The end
This project has been a transformative experience, shaping both my design approach and my understanding of what it means to create immersive storytelling. What started as a structured, museum-style exhibit evolved into a fully interactive virtual experience, challenging me to think creatively and strategically about how people connect with history, place, and memory. Each phase, from initial research to the final build in Unity, pushed me to find ways to make The Meadows’ story feel immediate and personally meaningful.
Through this journey, I realized how important flexibility is in both research and design. While my semi-structured interviews and field observations provided essential insights, I see now that additional methods—such as focus groups or digital ethnography—could have enriched my understanding of how different audiences experience and value The Meadows. This would have added layers to the project, making it even more inclusive and reflective of diverse perspectives. Adjusting my research approach would have also provided broader context, ultimately enhancing the emotional depth of the final experience.
Designing this project also taught me the value of iteration and openness to change. Moving from a three-section installation to a single interactive wall, and finally to a virtual Unity environment, revealed new possibilities with each adaptation. These shifts allowed me to refine and simplify the experience, teaching me that design is a fluid process, where each iteration is an opportunity to create something more engaging and meaningful. I came to appreciate that great design often emerges not from initial ideas but from responding thoughtfully to challenges and user needs.
Ultimately, this project has made me a more user-centered and adaptable designer, someone who balances creativity with technical precision and sees storytelling as a tool for connection. My work now reflects a stronger focus on creating experiences that resonate with people on an emotional level. I’ve grown not only as a designer but as a storyteller, understanding that each design choice shapes how users interact with, reflect on, and remember the spaces we create. This project has solidified my commitment to designing with empathy, crafting experiences that inspire connection and contemplation, and honoring the stories that make places like The Meadows come alive.