The event was opened with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between CNRS and ITMO University, dedicated to collaborative research in the field of high technologies for restoration and preservation of objects of historical and cultural heritage. There already are projects conducted within the framework of this collaboration — those have to do with developing and introducing technologies like VR tours, historical 3D reconstructions, panoramic 360 videos and interactive VR programs that use photometric stereo and laser scanning technologies. Such technologies can also be used to help professionals prepare exhibitions or for working with archives.
The results of French-Russian research conducted by ITMO's Design and Multimedia Center in collaboration with Laboratoire de conservation de Draguignan and the PERAZIO Engineering Company were presented during the Electronic Imaging & the Visual Arts (EVA-2016) international conference organized by ITMO University, the State Russian Museum and the University of Florence.
The memorandum was signed by Vladimir Nikiforov, vice-rector for Academic Affairs, and Ms. Hélène Naftalski, the regional representative of the CNRS, in the presence of the French ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert, professor Alain Schuhl, Head of CNRS's Institute of Physics, as well as French and Russian leading scientists and the embassy’s staff.
The collaboration between CNRS and ITMO was initiated by a French-Russian Interdisciplinary Center — the Poncelet Laboratory. The Poncelet Laboratory conducts fundamental research in the field of physics, mathematics and informatics.
