VR Aesthetic Contributions in Transformative Experience Design (TED)

Abstract

Within the field of Virtual Reality (VR), Transformative Experience Design (TED) has emerged as a design-oriented research trajectory concerned with understanding how immersive technologies can be intentionally shaped to support transformative human experiences. This paper explores VR as a future-facing design medium for eliciting such experiences, foregrounding conceptual and experiential contributions rather than technical optimization. The study first articulates the theoretical underpinnings of the TED framework, drawing on design-relevant constructs including the sublime, self-transcendence, and awe as lenses for shaping interaction and experience. Building on this framing, the paper presents the initial design exploration of a prototype that investigates a range of experiential valences proposed by TED, with particular attention to aesthetic intensification and embodied engagement. The research adopts a somaesthetic design perspective, examining how bodily awareness and sensory coupling can be leveraged to support meaningful interaction within immersive environments. Empirical exploration is conducted through an experimental VR ecosystem that integrates somatic input as a design material, enabling reflective and affective modes of interaction rather than focusing on technical performance. The paper discusses how these design decisions contribute to the cultivation of transformative potential, particularly through their aesthetic, symbolic, and experiential implications. By positioning VR as a medium for speculative and experiential design inquiry, this work contributes design knowledge and future-oriented insights relevant to human–technology interaction in emerging immersive systems.

Keywords: Virtual Reality, Transformative Experience Design, Sublime, Aesthetics

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1007668