Mammary Mountain is an intimate immersive virtual reality(VR) experience that explores dis-ease within the body during breast cancer and the body's relationship to the broader context of the land. This new immersive experience tells the stories of patients' and survivors' healthcare struggles, and the hidden experiences of breast cancer treatment.
It tells the lesser told stories not only of survival, but of trauma from the life changing experience of (Breast) Cancer through a haptic garment, so audience members/ visitors can feel vibration in the area of the lymph nodes where breast cancer grows. This work is not only for breast cancer patients and survivors but more so for family, friends and those with no experience of cancer in their own lives to have more empathy and care for those who do around them.
The piece is explored through animated illustrations, poetry, personal stories of 8 participants, and field recordings of Tara Baoth Mooney, created while going through cancer treatment herself. These recorded sounds and drawings have been further brought to life through the strong visual 3D landscape and evocative animation created by Maf’j Alvarez using VR.
Camille Baker conceived the concept, created the narrative framework and did content development, story collection and editing, grant writing, community outreach and workshop development, staging, promotion, and executive production.
The artists hope this work ignites new public engagement, ultimately resulting in a more nuanced and holistic understanding and empathy of the breast cancer treatment experience.
See more on our website mammary-vr.art/