• by Colin Kirkland , August 1, 2023

As the gaming and metaverse platform Roblox continues to attract a mix of young adult users, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has decided to team up with Verizon to launch “Replica,” which allows Metropolitan Museum of Art visitors to scan artwork and bring wearable elements of the works digitally into the Roblox platform via augmented reality.

Users can download the Replica app starting this Tuesday, then, starting August 3, Met visitors can access the in-app map to guide them to artworks placed around the museum. 

The app will provide visitors with insights into the physical works and allow them to start a free digital collection for their Roblox avatar.  

The Met says that each wearable piece in Replica was inspired by art across the museum’s collection of 1.5 million objects, “like a Japanese suit of armor…or Vincent van Gogh’s straw hat from his iconic Self-Portrait of 1887.” 

The 37 selected artworks that are now transferable to Roblox are drawn from objects on view across more than 30 galleries spanning nine curatorial areas of the museum, including the American Wing, Egyptian Art, European Paintings, and Asian Art. 

The Met’s French director and CEO Marina Kellen says that the museum wanted to engage visitors in a “captivating, fun, and truly unique journey through the museum,” adding that Replica aims to educate and inspire “playful connections with art” both in the museum and the digital realm. 

In the app, visitors are invited to follow clues that appear on the digital map of the museum, which lead to various galleries and physical artworks. After the artworks are scanned in person, the featured object in the work is transformed into a collectible replica, ready for Roblox use.  

The experience was created by Verizon, production company Ode to Joy, and advertising company Unit9, which blurred the lines between physical and virtual during the COVID-19 pandemic in “The Met Unframed,” a video experience that allowed people to explore the museum online via virtual tours and games.

This new experience, now available for free on iOS and Android devices, builds off of this previous work.