By the rising tide of Humber: Flooding Andrew Marvell’s Hull in VR

Project partners: BetaJester and the University of Hull

The creative and academic worlds of North and East Yorkshire come together to engage new and young audiences with the story of poet Andrew Marvell (1621–78). The story highlights Marvell’s relationship with Hull and the Humber in the lead-up to his 400th birthday anniversary in March 2021. 

The project teams, York-based BetaJester and the University of Hull, have developed the University’s Energy and Environment Institute’s existing digital resource – a flood model that can be used to represent the flooding around the Humber. The model was then developed to demonstrate how the 1646 Humber flood impacted on Hull. 

The 360-degree immersive VR video allows users to experience the flood which Marvell wrote about nearly 400 years ago. The project promotes flood awareness within a region that is historically prone to flooding and brings together literature and climate change through VR technology. 

The project was led by Dr Stewart Mottram, a Senior Lecturer in English, whose research focuses on the 17th-century poet. Dr Mottram writes: 

“This project brings together the heart of Hull in the 17th Century with the climate interests of the University. As a city, we have a lot of history and heritage with flooding and we are at an advantage we have never been at before, where we can now use technology to explore and create some of our history, through virtual reality.”

The project develops BetaJester as an industry leader in flood and environmental modelling in VR. BetaJester develops immersive and interactive digital experiences across games, marketing, advertising and research.

By the rising tide of the Humber was part of the virtual Freedom Festival that took place online from 4th-6th September 2020. 

Categories: Technology